


Long Way Down

by h_lovely



Category: Gundam Wing
Genre: Angst, Crime Scenes, Explicit Language, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Lemon, Lime, M/M, Non-Graphic Violence, Past Relationship(s), Preventers, Prostitution, References to Drugs, Undecided Relationship(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-17
Updated: 2017-07-02
Packaged: 2018-04-15 07:29:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 44,095
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4598127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/h_lovely/pseuds/h_lovely
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Heero Yuy has hit rock bottom- or at least that's what everyone keeps telling him. But when someone from his past shows up unannounced and looking for his help, the new mission he receives might be just the thing to fill a void in his life that he never knew existed before. - 1x2x1 -</p><p>  <em>"Whatever it is you want me to do, the answer is no."</em></p><p>[hiatus]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Hello Darkness, My Old Friend

**Author's Note:**

> **Disclaimer:** Gundam Wing is a product of Sunrise  & Bandai Entertainment, I do not claim ownership to these characters, only to my own words.
> 
>  **A/N:** Here is my next attempt at a full length 1x2x1 story. This one will be considerably different than the storyline of _Maxwell_ , a little darker and with a slightly different dynamic between the characters. For this one I'm trying my hand at a 'Heero-centric' perspective (I hope you don't mind I've taken liberties and given him the persona of not being a walking computer with zero tact or emotional frequencies). This will explore the way I'd like to think his mind works and the way a certain someone has an effect on that in the long run. As always, there will still be tons of Duo to go around, as well as all our other friends.
> 
> Mood music? Of course this story's namesake, _Long Way Down_ by Robert DeLong as well as the entire Royal Blood album (trust me). As the story progresses maybe I'll make an 8track playlist or something to go along with this emotional roller coaster of a fic.
> 
> As always, comments and feedback are my lifeblood! And with that being said, without further ado...

"Never thought I'd see the day Heero Yuy would be trying to drown himself in- what is that? Tequila?"

The voice was deeper than he remembered, possibly more grating but nonetheless the odd drawl he knew well, an accent he'd never quite been able to place. The familiarity made his stomach turn, his eyes following that long braid as it twisted in the air before settling over a leather encased chest as the man attached perched himself on a stool to slouch against the table top.

Heero's eyes drew upwards, first to the almost empty bottle of golden liquid now between them, and then to stare at that infuriating smirk. He silently damned every bionic cell in his body, every piece of nano-tech swimming through his veins, that hindered him from becoming as drunk as one should be after nearly finishing an entire bottle of tequila in one sitting.

"What do you want?" he asked, feeling his voice struggling with the words slightly. Maybe he was more intoxicated than he'd given himself credit for.

Duo Maxwell stared up at him through thick lashes, a pointed finger coming up to rest under the bill of his dark and worn looking baseball cap to push it back off of his forehead, revealing those wild, chestnut bangs. "What? No 'hey Duo' or 'how's it going man?' A fine way to greet your old buddy."

Heero just stared, not able to comprehend if this were a figment of his imagination or if Duo was, in fact, really sitting there in front of him, rambling out the ass, and calling him 'buddy.'

With a rough sigh, the braided man's head shook back and forth slowly, though his smirk did not diminish and his surprisingly intense eye contact did not falter for a second. "I want a lot of things, Heero. But right now I only have one thing on my list-  _you_."

The urge to swallow attacked Heero's throat then and he had to pointedly instruct his stomach not to breach its contents. Duo stared at him, lips twitching, something feral there- how long had it been since they'd last seen one another? Heero couldn't quite remember, but it certainly hadn't been long enough.

His skin felt like it was going to crawl right off of his body. "Me?"

A thin brow quirked upwards. "Yeah,  _you_." Duo pointed a finger at his chest with a look that expressed his acknowledgement that Heero's confusion was, in and of itself, very stupid. "I need your help."

It was not a statement that Heero had ever heard from the man.  _Help_ \- Duo certainly never needed it, and even when he had he definitely never asked for it. "My help?"

"You sure ask a lot of questions, don't you? Do I need to start over in Japanese? Damn, she must've really done a number on you," Duo muttered, eyes averted, an empty shot glass appearing out of nowhere in front of him, his fingers expertly pouring the remaining thimbles of burning liquid into two portions, one for each of them.

"Now," he said, slamming the bottle back down with little grace and picking up his own shot between thumb and forefinger, a few drops running down the outside of the glass with the abrupt movement. "Whadya say we drink to old times, eh?"

Heero was numb, unsure of whether this was from the tequila or from the nightmare he was almost certain could not be his actual reality, he watched his fingers pick up the well-used shot glass as if Duo's words had been some sort of order that he obeyed with uncanny obedience.

Glasses clinked and the alcohol burned down his throat and Duo said something around a mouthful of grinning teeth and then there was nothing but blackness.

* * *

The first thing he remembered was the smell of something sweet filtering into his nose, a scent he couldn't quite identify, but then slowly- very slowly- as his mind adjusted to the idea of coming back to reality, Heero's eyes opened to be met with a pair of sky blue ones staring back at him.

He blinked, squinting. The smell was perfume,  _her_  perfume- but this woman was not her. Heero's head began to throb from trying to place the features he found to be somewhat familiar.

"Where am I?" His tongue was cotton as the words tried to force their way out.

The woman gave him a brief smile, her upturned nose and pixie black hair registering some form of memory in Heero's brain, but he still couldn't quite place her.

"An apartment in Ixelles," she responded, matter-of-fact.

Heero brought the heel of his hand up to rub against his right eye.  _Ixelles_. That was a ways off from the bar he'd been in last night- but at least he was still in Brussels. "Why did you bring me here?"

The woman's brows furrowed then as he observed her through his narrowed vision. "Wow, whatever he put in your drink last night must've been a real doozy." He couldn't quite tell if her tone was sarcastic or disbelieving. "I didn't bring you here- Duo did."

That was enough to jar Heero back into full alertness, his eyes flashing wide to stare at the woman, while his brain worked on overdrive to decide which question to ask first. But he didn't get to as the sound of a door slamming shut sent a shockwave of ache through his skull and down the back of his spine.

"What'd I do?" came the voice he'd thought himself rid of so long ago. It was followed shortly by Duo's smiling features and lean- if not entirely too skinny- body clad in jeans a size too small and a t-shirt that looked as if at one time it had been black in color.

Now, in the painful light of day, the only thing conceivably different about the man's appearance since their last encounter was the hint of laugh lines crinkling over his skin and the addition of perhaps two inches to his still rather small height. Heero knew that he had, in fact, not changed at all- but he supposed if anyone could find  _something_  to say about the older version of himself, it would inevitably be Duo.

"Oh good, you're up," the braided man said, eyes shining under the rays of sunshine filtering in from a window behind the couch Heero currently found himself on.

Heero managed a grunt in response as he pulled his body into some semblance of a sitting position. His head swam for a second, his vision darkening, but after a heavy intake of breath the unusual sensation cleared.

Duo thrust the brown paper bag he was carrying with one arm towards the short-haired woman. "You're groceries, m'lady."

The woman took the bag with an over-exaggerated roll of her eyes. Heero watched with curiosity as Duo's lips came to rest at her cheek, kissing there and then brushing along her skin until he was able to whisper something in her ear, her mouth quirking at whatever apparent secret had just been shared.

A second later Duo was standing in front of him, so close that their legs were practically touching. "You a breakfast man nowadays, Heero?"

He wasn't certain he'd answered in any sort of affirmative way, but ten minutes and several blocks later, Heero found himself sitting across from that smirk, the shirt clinging to his upper-body feeling damp and uncomfortable against his skin. He needed a shower and perhaps a frontal lobotomy.

Duo sat there, buttering an english muffin with clinical precision. Heero stared down at his plate of runny eggs and grimaced. How had he let himself fall into this entirely bizarre position?

"Duo-" he hadn't said the man's name aloud yet and it tasted sour on his tongue. "What are you doing here?"

It was true that he had not actually  _seen_  Duo in person for- could it already have been six years? But that didn't mean he hadn't been privy to some of the events of his life, they'd both been with Preventer after all and even if the braided man worked primarily in the L2 sector, Heero still heard of him on occasion from fellow agents and even Une herself once.

Quatre tried hard to keep tabs on everyone and at first that had annoyed him, though he understood lately the need to feel like they were all still close- the five ex-pilots that is. And so he had heard of Duo's life through some precisely worded emails and any gossip at the bi-monthly dinners Quatre hosted at his Brussels estate- even if he had admittedly only attended a handful of them since the war. Though that had been better than Duo- he had yet to make an appearance at a single one.

But even after all of that, Duo had been out of his life- in his rawest physical form- and now sitting in a vinyl booth in front of a sticky table, slowly Heero was coming to terms with something he never thought he'd have to deal with- having to face pilot 02, hungover and disoriented.

Duo's smirk seemed to grow in size, if that were at all possible. "I told you last night, don't you remember? I need your help."

"That woman implied you had put something in my drink," Heero found himself saying.

"Woman?" The fingers of Duo's right hand began to tap haphazardly against the table. "Oh, Hilde? Nah, she was prolly just yanking your chain. You think I'd really do something like that to one of my old war buddies?"

_Old war buddies?_ There it was again, that odd genial tone of his creeping into Heero's unwilling ears.

"Hilde," he repeated, the name finally registering something worthwhile in his brain. He remembered something vague, something from the war, something with Libra, something involving- he decided abruptly that he'd rather not think about that particular memory anymore.

Duo nodded, chewing on a piece of bacon, but his mind had apparently latched onto something else entirely as he pulled a small paper from his back pocket. Heero, damn Preventer instincts clicking immediately into place, found his fingers reaching forward to discover that it was more than just a paper, it was a photograph.

He pulled it an inch towards him and Duo released from his end to allow the other man's eyes to rove. It was an image of a body, thin but toned and not that unlike Duo's own, though there was one distinct difference- this person was incontestably dead.

"The vic was beaten to death," Heero said mechanically. "Raped?"

When he looked up for approval Duo's demeanor had changed entirely, his eyes seeming to sink back into his skull, their indigo irises growing darker, his lips pulled downward in an unflattering frown. He did not speak, only grunted out an affirmative answer while his head bobbed up and down once.

Brows furrowing, Heero looked back down at the picture, studying the man's ashen skin, bleached by a camera flash. "What does this have to do with me?" Then after a hesitant moment he added, "I'm not with Preventer anymore."

Duo took a swig of neon orange juice before answering, his eyes becoming slightly lighter. "Neither am I."

Heero felt as though someone might pop out from behind him with a hidden camera yelling 'gotcha!' in his ear. That might have been a more preferable scenario than this one anyways.

"I don't understand. This photograph is from a crime scene, is it not?" He couldn't even begin to comprehend the supreme amount of confusion suddenly wracking his brain. Damn Maxwell and his impossible ability to screw up his mind more than even the likes of Doctor J.

Duo let out a low breath through slightly parted lips. "It is," he said. "But right now, I'm as 'retired' as you are."

Heero wasn't exactly sure what that was supposed to mean or imply, if anything at all. "What happened?"

Duo shrugged, the movement causing a squeaking sound from the booth's unflattering vinyl. "You know, going by the book has just never been my schtick. I don't always 'play nice,' remember?"

Yes, that Heero remembered- among other things. His eyes went to study the formica designs sitting just below a thin layer of greasy residue on the table. "You were fired?"

He didn't look up in time to catch how Duo initially reacted to the question. "You could say that," he answered, all too blankly.

"If you are no longer an agent, and I am no longer an agent, then I will ask you again: why are you here?" Heero could sense the impatience creeping through his voice and it almost startled him.

Duo didn't notice, or else ignored the sharp edge. "This case has been left open for one year, four months, and twenty-seven days- over the course of that time six more prostitutes have been found dead here on earth, all in the exact same way." His finger tapped harshly against the photograph. "This body was found on L2- he's a kid I knew once- before he, and everyone else but me, got fostered or adopted off."

Heero swallowed; he knew very little of Duo's past, but he did understand that it had not been a pleasant one. "Resorting to vigilantism?" he muttered, unsure exactly where Duo was trying to route this conversation.

"Fuck vigilantism. This was a good kid, he might have hustled and made some poor choices, but he still didn't damn well deserve this," Duo spat out. "And you know why he died? Because he fucking stumbled upon something that could ruin the entire perfect, pretentious little structure that is the ESUN's so-called government."

Heero could not fight off his curiosity any longer, so he bit. "And you know this  _how_?"

"Well, being on L2 as a Prev agent- but also as a 'friend of the people' shall we say- you learn a thing or two about how things work," Duo explained rather animatedly. "Ever noticed how there seems to be an abundance of drug cartels dirt-side? A lot of 'em get swept under the rug because there's never enough evidence to prosecute.

"It's a misconception that people on the colonies don't use the same types of recreational drugs that people on earth do because of whatever space vacuum, artificial gravity bullshit some high-off-his-ass politician came up with to make outer-space seem more-  _palatable_  to people.  _Actually_  it's the exact same shit- but a lot of people dirtside don't know that.

"So why would earth cartels bother running with anyone on the colonies? There's your out- and boy do these guys know how to use it to their advantage. Think about all the richie-rich government ground-bounders. Once one of 'em becomes addicted to something, he'll do anything to get more, right?"

Heero had reigned in his impending need to interject for as long as he could. "You're trying to tell me that someone's been selling highly illegal 'colony' drugs to government officials, then overpricing them when they become addicted?"

"You're half-right. See a bed-warmer is an easy mule from earth to the colonies- they might slip it in their food or drinks- but only while on-colony for let's say a 'business trip-' and then after about a week of torture back on earth dealers come to 'em with cheap crack or whatever bullshit and wave it in front of them till they break. It's a lucrative deal, they can sometimes get upwards of half-a-million for one job."

"Which then goes directly off-earth and back to the colonies-" Heero supplied in a conclusion he never imagined himself actually reaching. "Through the proper channels it would become untraceable."

Duo's eyes shown from beneath thick lashes. "There's that genius asshole I remember. See, all you had to do was get over your hangover a bit."

Trying to ignore the remark as impassively as possible, Heero rerouted the conversation. "And you think this vic was tied up in it somehow? Wrong place at the wrong time perhaps?"

"He was a prostitute- a bed-warmer- but his body was found on L2. Though the bigger problem is that no one seems to think it could be connected to the murders here on earth."

Heero inclined his head. "And you do?"

"If Prev doesn't suspect the connection, then these cartels get to pretty much eat off the backs of the government fat-cats while Preventer continues to follow their dicks around earth because that's where the evidence leads 'em." Duo's eyes were glued to his fingers, their hyperactive movement ceaseless. "But what happens when an easily expendable colony bed-warmer gets greedy?"

"The cartels take care of the loose ends and they find someone new to take care of their-  _clients_ ," Heero said, his voice sounding far off as some of the puzzle pieces seemed to be clicking into place. "Then they drop the bodies on earth to keep Preventer far enough away from the actual market."

"It's a fucking vicious cycle," he heard Duo mutter behind suddenly clenched teeth.

Heero wasn't sure he could take much more of this. Wasn't there something he should be doing right now- other than sipping a bitter excuse for coffee and listening to Duo rant about the scum of the ESUN? He thought about that for a moment, but couldn't come up with anything plausible.

"So why exactly do you need my help?" he asked, abruptly shaking Duo from whatever angry reverie he had fallen into.

The braided man blinked. "You've still got Preventer access. I've been locked out for months, but your-  _retirement_ \- was more recent, no?"

Heero felt something begin to heat just beneath his skin. "Whatever it is you want me to do, the answer is no."

"Heero, listen, you haven't even heard-"

"I said no. Absolutely not. My ID's expired anyway, there's no way I'd make it past the front door-"

Duo held up a hand to stop him. "That's where you're wrong. On L2 they won't look twice- trust me, even in this 'golden era of tech' news travels pretty damn slow to the dark-side of the moon."

Heero sighed. He had to stick to his guns, otherwise he'd never be able to gain any traction with Maxwell. Not that he thought they might have a relationship now that he was back on earth for which traction might be needed. For all he knew this would be it, the man would use him and then leave him to wallow once more. That might not be the worst option of course, but he had to at least try and keep up his side of the debate here, if nothing but for his poor moral's sake.

"If I do this-" Heero himself couldn't quite believe the words that tumbled forth from his mouth. What mental betrayal was this? "-If I get you whatever intel you're looking for from Preventer- can I go back to my old life then?"

It had come out a bit snider than he'd have thought, but the sentiment was truthful. After all he  _would_  rather his old life back- particularly the one without Duo in it.

But the man before him just smiled. "Of course you can- though I don't know why you'd want to. Seemed pretty fuckin' boring to me-  _but_  that's really not my place, is it?"

He was standing now, his braid twitching behind him. Heero followed suit, throwing a few crumpled bills on the table before they exited the cafe and back onto the street. He watched as Duo hailed a cab, laying his arm against the passenger's open window and speaking to the man in that jovial way of his, giving what looked like a charge-card and then pulling back to face his companion once again.

"Saul here'll take you home. Shuttle leaves at 8:00 am tomorrow."

Heero had to wonder if Duo actually knew the cabbie, or else he was just pretentious enough to read his license where it was probably plastered on the dashboard. He reached forward to grab the back door handle, not bothering to say anything in response or gratitude, when a hand fell against his shoulder and he had to force down the impulse to grab it by the wrist and slam it against his knee.

"You got a gun, Heero?" Duo was asking, his grip tightening for only a moment as he'd sensed the tension of the contact, but chose to fight against it. Cocksure as ever.

Heero turned only half back around. "I don't carry one anymore."

"A knife then?" Duo wondered. He shook his head.

Chestnut brows moved first upwards in disbelief and then lowered to create a deep 'v' over dark eyes. "Man this whole Relena thing really did a number on you."

Acid threatened to spill into his throat, but Heero swallowed it down. Why the hell had Duo Maxwell chosen  _now_  to come back into his life anyways?

Instead of letting any of the emotions now coursing through his chest filter into his expression, he put on his best scowl, mainly for Duo's benefit if not also to reminisce just a bit. "I have no use for weapons anymore."

" _Who are you?_ " Duo wondered incredulously, his voice dropping an octave.

Heero managed to shrug off the hand from his shoulder, the movement enough of an answer in his opinion.

A harsh laugh bit through the air then. "Well, whatever floats your fuckin' boat I guess. But we're gonna have to get you something- you know just in case you decide a gun might come in handy once you're being jumped in a back alley on L2 or some shit."

The cab's engine revved once beside them, impatient even with the meter running. Heero almost growled. "Now that I no longer work for Preventer my gun license has been revoked. I'm willing to bet that that is the same case for you as well."

Duo's smirk was back then and that only proved to heat the sense of unrest building in Heero's gut.

"Well then, it's a good thing I use knives, eh?"


	2. Out Saving The World

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Heero shook his head, dusting himself off for show. "I'm fine."_
> 
> _"Fine? Yeah, well you've really got to break this habit of jumping out of windows to your untimely death."_

They'd made it halfway through the leg of their journey- halfway meaning six hours down and six more to go and at this point Heero wasn't positively sure he was going to make it.

It's not that he'd forgotten what traveling with Duo could be like- his constant need for chatter, his incessant bouts of sarcasm, his continuous rant over this politico or that politico- Heero just wasn't sure he'd properly prepared himself for such a commitment as this was turning out to become.

He'd requested the man's assistance once to pilot a shuttle to X81999. At the time it had been a good idea, even if he had to begrudgingly admit to Duo's strength as a pilot and then endure the endless audacity that went along with that. But this time neither man was piloting, neither had to check on specs or reroute or deal with incoming comms. No, instead they were passengers and apparently being a passenger meant the need to converse and reminisce and debate and all the things Heero did not want to do right now- or ever for that matter.

"Why do you hate the world so much?" Duo had been silent for going on seven minutes straight, his new best record since they'd exited earth's atmosphere.

Heero turned only his eyes to stare at the man next to him. "I don't hate the world- just  _you_  at the moment."

The other man only grinned. "Hey, look at that- I guess that makes us even, don't it?"

The odd little habit Duo had of ending nearly every one of his sentences with an inflection or question had not gone unnoticed. In fact, if it hadn't been so annoying, in some other universe Heero might have found it endearing.

They sat again for some time in silence and slowly Heero's mind wondered to the exact meaning behind Duo's sentiment. He did not hate the world- what kind of a conclusion was that to jump to? Had he really given off that cynical of a vibe? No, that seemed to be Duo's department- however...

"I played my role. I helped form peace, rebuild a new unified nation, stood next to the figurehead of the free world for as long as she needed me." Heero spoke evenly, making sure his words were precise, but only loud enough for his companion to hear. "I killed and fought and dealt with all the repercussions that came with being a Gundam pilot."

Beside him, Duo let out a little snort. "Didn't we all? And what did we get out of all that bullshit?"

Heero's shoulders heaved. "A Preventer badge, a meaningless title, health benefits."

Duo laughed openly at that. "And a fiancée?"

He should have never entered into this conversation, but somehow his mouth kept throwing him under the bus. " _Ex_ -fiancée," Heero growled.

"Right." Duo's head bobbed a couple of times, his eyes alight with intrigue over this new, and possibly dangerous, conversation. "But you can't honestly sit here and tell me that you actually _loved_  Relena?"

Heero thought about it for a long minute. "No," he conceded.

"She was familiar and grounding- or at least the idea of her was," Duo replied, licking at his bottom lip oddly. "I get it, really. Can you believe Hilde and I talked about gettin' hitched once- it was a few years back, but shit can you imagine it?  _Me_ , a husband, the bread-winner, the protector- that's just not our style, is it 'Ro?"

As much as it pained him to think it, Duo was probably right. He could not have followed Relena around like an obedient pup, live in her mansion, attend her government galas for the rest of the foreseeable future. That would have been- was 'degrading' the proper word? But he'd felt something for her and he supposed that's where his latest  _alcoholic_  tendencies came into play.

"She thought I had forgotten our anniversary," he said, his tone less than verbose, but more than a grunt. "I couldn't come because I was out 'saving the world' again."

"Heh, that's a load of bull. And hell, it don't even matter does it? How long had y'all been engaged for anyways- think there was ever actually going to be a ceremony to make it all nice and squeaky clean?" Duo's smirk had grown into something sloppy, like he'd been suddenly intoxicated by the words now filtering out of his mouth. "Nah, the world will always need saving, this so-called peace is just a fabrication to keep the people happy for a little while until the next massacre happens. An appeasement, a way to put the blinders up. Kinda like that ring Relena told you to give her, eh?"

Heero didn't want to admit to Duo that he had been correct about anything that had just transpired between them and so instead he crossed arms over his chest and closed his eyes to feign sleep- it still seemed to be the only way to get Duo to actually shut up.

* * *

It was just past 10 am and Duo had woken up with red eyes and a runny nose and a snarl the likes of even L2 had probably never seen before.

"Damn colony-crud," he mumbled, putting their rental car- innocuous in design and with few of the luxuries Heero had grown annoyingly accustomed to in Sanc- into park and pulled out a wad of tissue to rub at his pointed nose. "I could go for a bottle of Nyquil and a few handfuls of aspirin right about now."

Heero could practically hear the congestion that had burrowed into Duo's chest with every breath the other man took. But he did his best to ignore the bizarre impulse to want to find the nearest drug store and pump the braided menace full of anything that might take the edge off. That wasn't his place, and as much as Duo harped on it, he knew firsthand the man's aversion to taking any form of medication- a quirk he'd had ever since they'd first met and something Heero had still not quite been able to grasp.

"Duo," he began, the name still heavy on his tongue even after having spent nearly forty-eight hours straight with the man. "I will require some sort of-  _guidelines_ -"

"You mean  _mission specs_?" Duo met him with a sidelong glance, the pink tip of his nose scrunching ever slightly as he laughed.

Heero nodded. "Well- yes. I must know my goal in order to-"

"Yeah, yeah, blah, blah. You wanna know how to go about 'accomplishing your mission.' Trust me 'Ro, after all these years I think I have actually begun to master the way that mind of yours works." Duo seemed proud of this statement, while Heero felt his muscles clench uncomfortably.

"Here, put these on." Duo was thrusting a pair of black, plastic-framed glasses into his hand, not bothering with any further explanation. Heero thought he'd been perfectly clear when he'd asked for his mission- why was Duo insisting on skirting around the details? Damn, infuriating Maxwell.

"I don't wear glasses," Heero said, frowning upwards at the man.

"Goddammit Heero, of course you don't." Duo's eyes rolled so forcefully they almost didn't make it back down. "These are special, they're not your regular old readers, they've got a nice little camera and mike attached so I can be in there with you- without actually being there in there with you. Make sense?"

Heero ignored most of what had been said. "Where did you get these?" he asked, studying the ordinary looking glasses in his hand.

Duo let out an exasperated sounding sigh, one Heero might've identified with if not for his habit of reigning in unnecessary emotional outbursts. "Geeze, since when do you ask so many questions? I think I liked you better when you were the silent, stoic, asshole type."

Again Heero ignored him, flicking open the glasses and sliding them on to rest against the bridge of his nose. They felt odd and inferior; he'd never worn something like this before, he wasn't even one to wear sunglasses all that often.

Apparently Duo was not willing to answer his previous question and so in leu of the possible argument that could take place, Heero pushed forward. "I am walking into the L2 Preventer Headquarters and I am looking for- what exactly?"

He'd hoped that rephrasing his earlier question in a more pointed way might gain him some results. Duo sniffled. "You're just visiting the morgue."

"The morgue," Heero repeated with some agitation. He'd gained a tiny bit of ground, but still nothing to sink his teeth into. "And what exactly am I supposed to tell security?"

"Whatever the hell you fuckin' feel like, 'Ro." Duo was now in the process of blowing his nose and Heero turned away when that little, infinitesimal feeling of remorse struck at him again. Duo rolled his shoulders then. "All I need is a little intel."

Ten minutes later, with Duo rambling on through the mike attached to his new accessory, Heero found himself sauntering down a hallway he felt like he'd been in before- of course every Preventer building seemed to be modeled in the exact same way, something that gave him an uncanny sense of unease when he thought about it too much.

"Remind me again why you cannot do this yourself?" he muttered, making sure no one was around to see him effectively talking to himself.

"Heero, seriously dude, you can put the puzzle pieces that are 'Duo Maxwell' back together once you're not  _walking through fucking Preventer headquarters_. Capiche?"

Heero grunted as he came to a stairwell that led to the third floor. Yes, this was identical to the building he'd spent most of his teenage and young-adult life in. That thought brought about a sour taste in his mouth and he quickly locked it back away in the recesses of his mind.

When he came to a metallic door marked 'Morgue: Authorized Personnel Only' he stopped abruptly, his eyes coming to stare at the card-reader attached to the door handle. He may have still possessed an ID that hadn't gotten a second glance walking through the front doors, but he knew for certain that all of his clearances had been wiped immediately after he'd walked out of Une's office little over a month ago.

"Duo, I don't-"

"Swipe your card."

"But-"

"Dammit, Yuy, trust me! Swipe the damn card."

Heero did as he was told, muttering foreign curses in not the friendliest of tones, and low and behold the red light blinked to green and the door latch clicked.

"It worked," he muttered, staring down at his ID before slipping silently into the room.

"Well no shit it worked," Duo was huffing through the speaker nearest his right ear. "I hacked the code- temporarily of course. Security here's a regular laugh."

Heero had almost forgotten about Duo's computer skills, a hacker to rival even himself. For a brief moment he held an appreciative smirk on his lips, but after realizing what was actually happening, he swiped at his mouth and glared down at his fingers with as much disgust as he could muster.

"Now what?" he asked, eyes sweeping over the ominously familiar place. Rows and rows of silver-doored drawers lining the back wall, tile floor for easy cleaning, a few metallic tables harboring sheet-covered bodies, toe-tags visible from beneath the off-white fabric.

"Drawer labeled Sawyer," Duo instructed sharply.

Richards, Robinson, Sampson,  _Sawyer_ \- Heero's eyes lit up only momentarily as he came across his end goal. Slowly his fingers went to unlatch the drawer, pulling out the thin table on which lied a cold and pale version of whoever this Sawyer person was in the land of the living.

"You're gonna have to turn him over," Duo instructed wearily in his ear; his voice was low and heavy and Heero then remembered the near firsthand view of the body through the lenses of the plastic framed glasses resting precariously against the bridge of his nose. "There's something particular I'm looking for."

With little hesitance Heero placed nimble hands at the man's arm, rigor mortis easing his job and he pushed upwards and then pulled against the sheets until the body came to rest effectively on its stomach. For once he was rather appreciative of the training he'd undergone- once, in another lifetime- that barred any aversion to death and gore. But he was pretty sure his exceptional strength didn't hurt with the minor heavy lifting either.

"What do you think?" came Duo's voice after a minute of running his vision up and down the body's pale expanse.

Heero, gaze falling back on the mark his mind had found odd more than once in his inspection, said, "Incision on right flank- it looks like a-  _flower_ , almost."

He could practically hear Duo's smile. "Ah, so you see it too? At least we know I ain't going crazy now."

Yes, they knew he wasn't  _going_  crazy now because certainly Maxwell was  _already_  crazy- even certifiable, if Heero were so lucky.

"What does it mean?" he wondered, staring down at the oddity. He turned his head to study it from a different angle; it seemed almost innocuous, it could have been just a bizarrely formed scrape if one weren't specifically looking for something out of the ordinary like he'd been doing.

A voice was saying something in his ear, but his mind had jumped into agent mode so quickly that it was just a distant tapping against his skull. This man was from L2, skinny and pale and 'as spacer as they come' Duo might've said. Heero had to force his stomach to settle at the thought of looking at the man's back without any other identifying details, this body could for all intents just as easily have been Duo's.

"Earth to Heero Yuy!" the voice was screaming at him now. Heero's eyes looked up from the body, focusing back in on reality.

"Someone's coming dumb-ass! Get yourself out-  _now_ ," Duo growled in his ear seconds before Heero's feet were moving again.

He realized now that Duo must have not only had eyes on whatever it was Heero was doing, but had managed to find a way into the building's security mainframe, a task he was quite familiar with from their time together during the war.

Heero surveyed the room, no windows, one exit. Duo hadn't said anything about ETA or given him anything more to go on other than slight panic. So he darted towards the door and when a voice didn't yell 'dumb-ass' at him again, he opened it and slipped out.

"Left," Duo muttered then, sounding somewhat distracted.

Heero heeded the advice, slinking down the hallway only to hear footsteps nearing from around the corner. He turned and eyes scoured the other direction, up towards the ceiling- no air ventilation shaft available here- and then finally to the wall beside him. A large window, glass, but with an easily removable screen behind it.

"Heero Yuy- don't you fucking-"

But he didn't have time to listen to Duo's threat as he'd popped the mesh out and was now free-falling the three stories downward.

Moments- perhaps only seconds- later he opened his eyes to be met with burning indigo. "Well I'm glad you're fucking alive so I get the pleasure of killing you myself," Duo growled, grabbing his wrist and pulling him to his feet.

Heero shook his head, dusting himself off for show. "I'm fine."

"Fine? Yeah, well you've really got to break this habit of jumping out of windows to your untimely death," Duo grumbled out as he guided their way back towards the rental. "This ain't the war no more, 'Ro- we aren't exactly spring chickens if you know what I mean? Next thing I know you'll be popping a bone back into place or blowing yourself up- and then when I have a heart attack over it  _you'll_  be the one responsible."

* * *

"What now?"

Duo had let him drive this time, so their trip so far had been considerably less life-threatening, though Heero had still managed to take a few turns too fast, just for old time's sake.

The braided man next to him, working tirelessly over a laptop he'd pulled from nowhere, twitched his lips once as if to reply, but then seemed to get distracted yet again by something flashing across his screen. This had been the third time Heero had inquired.

"Duo?" he prompted yet again, trying to hold onto that tiny string of resolve slowly slipping through his fingers.

"Hmm?" Duo inclined his head towards him, though his eyes and fingers never left their diligent work.

"I was asking-"

"Gotcha!" It was an all-out victory whoop and it nearly made Heero lose control of the vehicle. Duo turned towards him then with a careless grin. "What were you saying 'Ro?"

With as much composure as he could, Heero allowed his voice a tiny edge of contained lividity. "I said, Duo, 'what now?'"

"Oh- well- we've gotta go back to earth."

" _Earth?_ " Heero couldn't fight off the obvious incredulity. He bit against his tongue from spraying the man with a good helping of curses.

"Yes, Heero. You know, the big blue planet you like to call home?" Duo was walking on thin ice, but apparently he hadn't noticed.

Heero blinked a couple of times, regulating his breathing, and focussing all of his negative energy on the steering wheel clenched between his fists, imagining it as Duo's throat. "You dragged me halfway across the Sphere to look at a body in a Preventer morgue for five minutes and now you want to go back to earth?"

Duo was nodding along, giving him a look as if to say 'well duh.' A little line formed between his brows. "Yes as a matter of fact, I did. But we're far from done, I still need your help."

"Duo, you said I could go back to my old life-"

"Yeah, I did say that.  _After_  you help me out, buddy."

Heero growled. "Don't call me that."

"Yeah, whatever," Duo snorted back, folding hands behind his head and arching his back to stretch, leaving the laptop to cling precariously to his bony knees. "You know, if you really didn't want to help you coulda just said 'no' to begin with."

Heero could feel the man staring at him sidelong, waiting for a reaction. He was baiting him, wanting him to blow up and argue. But the problem was was that Heero couldn't do that. He couldn't argue the fact that he'd let his curiosity get the better of him, that ingrained instinct to want to poke around and toy with the puzzle Duo had bestowed upon him. The need- the near _impending_  need- to help this man. The thought made him sick.

So instead of arguing, Heero bit the inside of his cheek. "Tell me about the mark on the body."

Duo seemed satisfied with that, but didn't vocalize it. "Each vic found on earth had the same mark on his or her ' _flank_ ' as you so graciously put it. Prev thinks it's a gang symbol- which would make sense with our drug cartel theory- only now we've got Sawyer, an L2 spacer with the same mark." He explained it in such a matter-of-fact way that Heero couldn't help but be calmed by the odd explication.

"As we all well know L2-ers and earth-ers would never mix, a gang from either would never set foot on dirt or metal or vice versa," Duo went on. "So how in space would Sawyer- a kid who's never in his life made it dirtside- get mixed up with an earth cartel? Regardless of the possible colony connection, that just don't add up."

"This is why Preventer refuses to think the murders correspond," Heero added, his mind feeling a bit fuzzy from all the new information and angles Duo was spinning.

Duo touched the pad of his finger to the tip of his still pink nose. "Right. That's also why they refuse to reopen the case now nearly two years later."

Heero suddenly felt the lightbulb above his head flicker to life. Of course, that's why Duo needed him, needed access to Preventer- because he was trying to make connections and spin stories to a previously dead case. A kid from L2 that Duo knew in another lifetime was dead and he thought he could see the web the case was clinging to, but no one else would listen to his out-of-left-field speculations on it, so Sawyer would most likely end up rotting in the morgue until his body was thrown into an incinerator somewhere. It was too close to home for Duo, he needed perspective that he sorely lacked, but still Heero held his tongue.

He finally opened his mouth to say something,  _anything_ , but no words came out. Instead Duo's eyes had been pulled back to his computer. "I hacked into Sawyer's comms- apparently he'd been receiving some damn disturbing messages from an unlisted number."

Duo hit a button and the sound of static came through followed by a voice clearly modified, as it was deep and computerized.

_"Roses are red. Violets are blue. Don't play with me. And I won't play with you."_

Both men were silent for some time, the only sound being Duo's intermittent sniffling followed by a rough cough. After a second he placed his fingers back on the keys to type something in. Heero watched, one eye on the road one eye on Duo's paling face.

"Shit," Duo muttered, slamming the laptop closed. "That message was time stamped under an hour ago." He was rolling down the passenger window now. "It wasn't meant for Sawyer, it was meant for  _us_."

With that he ripped at the laptop's mainframe, breaking it in two, before chucking the piece of tech out the window. Heero began to drive faster.


	3. Contingency Plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _He did laugh then, something cold and harsh. "It's just consulting- and so I can feel better about things when this asshole is behind bars. Don't you trust me?"_

After thirty minutes of aimless driving in hopes of losing whatever tail they might have gained from the comm hack Duo had so haphazardly discovered, Heero had pulled the car into the parking lot of a coffee shop boasting 'free communications and intrasphere connection.'

He'd since been instructed to wait in the car and as much as he might've liked to argue with the command he had recently discovered how drained his body felt since their arrival on L2, a sensation of jet-lag just now catching up with him like a smack to the solar plexus. So, now in his 'old age-' years past his days as the indestructible 'perfect solider,' Heero didn't mind waiting in the car if only to close his eyes for a few brief moments of quiet, Duo-free time all to himself.

It didn't last as long as he would have liked.

"Guess what?" Duo slammed the passenger door behind him as he slid back into his seat.

Heero didn't bother with opening his eyes. "What?"

"Got a new palm-top and a lead." At that he managed to crack open his lids to observe Duo through lash covered slits. He didn't bother to ask where Duo had gotten the tech. "You know that email? Well I did a bit of screening and you'll never guess who the address was attached to."

Duo licked his lips. Heero forced himself to actually open his eyes and turn to give his full attention. "A prominent businessman who lives in Brussels. He's been arrested multiple times for suspected drug abuse, but conveniently enough his witnesses never seem to show up."

"The bed-warmers?" Heero interjected. "They're just black-mail pawns, but only the drug-runners know that."

Duo's head bobbed a couple of times, his bangs brushing against his forehead. "Rumor has it the guy- Cyrus Emir's his name - makes quite a few undisclosed 'business trips' specifically to the the L2 sector."

"So if Sawyer knew about the drug problem then he'd become a fast liability for someone in the ESUN's capital." Heero was fully awake now.

"Exactly. But that doesn't add up with the theory about the murders coming from the inside- if Sawyer was in it for the guy's money that makes sense, but there's no way an earthbound cartel would've had anything to do with it. The thing being a cartel murder would't be plausible- there's no connection, no way Sawyer was one of their mules, not all the way out on L2."

Heero's brows furrowed, eyes turning to study the new palm-top as Duo's fingers drummed across the surface in some sort of hyperactive pattern. He again wanted to bring up the idea of perspective, but held back in lieu of another possibility. "A copycat? To get rid of a witness without leaving any possible ties to Emir himself? Would be convenient if Sawyer was threatening blackmail."

At that Duo's lips curled upwards into a wide smile. "See? Without all that tequila floating around your system you're just as smart as ever, 'Ro."

He wasn't sure if he should take that as a compliment or a jab, but either way Heero was just glad they were making some sort of progress here, even speculatory. The faster he solved this puzzle, the faster he could go back to his customary haunts, no matter what Duo had to say about it.

He watched as Duo placed his thumbnail between teeth, staring out the windshield as if thinking crucially about what to say next. Heero wanted to prompt him, wanted to ask if he'd looked at shuttle schedules, wanted to know how much longer this little arrangement was actually going to last before either Duo himself up and ran out or Heero spontaneously combusted.

Duo chewed on the nail for a few more seconds then turned to stare at the other man's harshly pursed lips. "Emir's having a quiet little get-together at his mansion this weekend. Only the prominent will be there, probably a lot of politicians and big-wigs and minor celebrities. And-" He hung on the word, drawing out the syllables, while his eyes studied Heero as if waiting to see how long it might take for him to bite.

Count it, exactly four and a half seconds. Heero grunted in annoyance. " _And?_ "

" _And_  the ex-King of the World would definitely be a desirable addition to his guest list, don't you think?"

That was not what Heero had been expecting. He actually found himself flushing over it, crossing his arms stiffly in hopes of passing the color in his cheeks off as anger instead of agitation. "I was never the 'King of the World,' I was barely her fiancé."

Duo shrugged, reaching over to turn the keys still lodged in the ignition before Heero could react. "Eh, the details aren't important. With a little creative hustling I'm sure we can swing a couple of invitations." He smiled sideways then as the car rumbled to life. "Better get your tux out of storage, buddy."

* * *

Heero awoke to the enticing sensation of lips traveling along the shell of his ear.

"Missed you," purred a voice that wound it's way into his central nervous system.

His eyes were glazed with familiar lust, but as his vision focussed and came to rest on flashing indigo Heero's entire body tightened. "What are you doing?" he hissed out, though gave no command for his limbs to fight against the new force climbing atop him.

Duo smirked against the edge of his jaw. "Don't worry, they won't hear."

Warning bells rang through Heero's skull, but he found his hands coming to rest against the lithe hips that settled against his own. Duo was leaning over him on straddled legs, fingers dusting over the naked skin of a sharp collar bone, tongue mingling against the sensitive planes of a quivering neck.

Heero tried to turn his head to observe Duo, to reason with him, but all he could see were the muscles constricting against his pale back, the familiar priest's shirt abandoned on the floor somewhere, the only thing separating their dual arousals thin, black jodhpurs and skin-tight spandex.

Finally Heero brought his hand up to grip against Duo's wrist, catching his balance and causing the man to unlatch his devilish lips. He looked up, quirking a smirk. "You really don't wanna?" he whispered out, almost disappointed.

Staring into those imploring eyes Heero wasn't certain how much longer his resolve would hold out. It had been too long- for both of them. But this was not the most opportune place to have such a reunion as this. The walls were thin, Heero knew that well from a similar reunion that had taken place the night before with fellow comrades who were still unaware that he knew of their little romp.

He felt himself flush at the thought, but Duo took it for something else. His features glowed in the shadows, mischievous. Slowly lips came in contact with Heero's own, a tongue flicking along the bottom until he released his suddenly clenched teeth to invite the playful intruder.

"Duo," Heero muttered out as they broke apart, the mouth trailing down his jaw. He gasped back a moan as a slickness grazed the lobe of his ear. "We must-" he did moan this time. "-be  _silent_."

Fingers found a hardening nub on his chest and pinched. "I can, but I'm not so sure about you, 'Ro."

For a moment Heero was uncertain what he meant by that; it wasn't as though Duo was any less vocal than he- in fact he was usually more so. He supposed in the heat of the moment, when things got particularly passionate or even violent-

His train of thought was lost entirely as a tongue swirled against the muscle between neck and shoulder, the skin tinging with the gentle ministrations just before a set of sharp teeth latched on without mercy. Heero's yell was cut off by a hand crushing against his lips and that's when he knew it was all over. Desperately he tried to suck in air as Duo's lips traveled further south until finally-

With a strangled cry Heero's body heaved upwards, eyes flashing open to stare at the darkness engulfing him. There was no Duo atop him, kissing and teasing, though the arousal he could feel in his groin gave every indication that there was.

Fingers came to his temple to swipe away beads of sweat that had accumulated there. Heero's eyes adjusted and then he took in the surroundings of Trowa's brownstone, the hard, leather couch he was resting on, the faint hum of a ceiling fan overhead.

With a deep breath Heero fell back against his makeshift bed, digging the heels of his hands against his eyes and willing himself to forget. He fell asleep thinking about the vivid sensation of weight against his body and painful heat on his neck.

It hadn't been a dream- it had been a memory.

* * *

The cavernous automat situated two blocks south of Preventer Plaza in Brussels was clean and white and a place on the opposite end of the spectrum from where he and Duo had been frequenting lately. He welcomed the change even if the familiar establishment came with a good helping of muddled chastising in the form of an infamous Chang Wufei lecture.

"He wants your help on a Preventer case?"

Immediately Heero had regretted the slip of his tongue as his ex-partner had inquired about his recent absence here on earth- not like his whereabouts mattered much being unemployed and since unattached- but still Wufei was his  _friend_ \- as hard as that pill was to swallow- before anything else and so he supposed the concern was duly appropriate.

He swiped his card in the reader next to a glass case featuring an acceptable looking plate of dark greens scattered with other chopped vegetables he'd not encountered in some time. "Yes," Heero answered as blandly as possible.

Wufei was turning the little chrome-plated knob next to his own choice in a precise manner to deposit his work-issued coins. "Need I remind you that neither of you are employed by Preventer anymore?"

Heero retrieved his plate to place on the tray in front of him, his body moving independently of his mind, the process ingrained in his muscles. His recent unemployment certainly hadn't stopped him from flashing his expired badge days before. If Preventer chose to hire security guards that ignorant then he felt comfortable enough working outside the lines on a case that had- according to Duo- been stagnate for almost two years now anyways. No amount of guilt tripping was going to affect his decision at this point.

He watched Wufei grab a little wooden box of dumplings from their compartment. "Yes, I am well aware, Chang."

They picked up their trays to head towards a beverage island in the center of the automat. Wufei's eyes faced forward, but his words trailed out the side of his mouth as they walked. "And you trust him?"

Heero didn't really care to answer that question, not because of the obvious amount of offense placed behind it, but because Wufei was undoubtably right about placing it there. Duo had been a bit of an unpredictable agent, a firecracker- or more likely a bomb- placed amongst Preventer ranks; he was notorious throughout the entire organization. Even during the war the man had been a bit unpredictable, but Wufei himself did not have much room to speak in that category either.

Heero resigned himself to focussing on finding an open table while Wufei fixed a cup of tea behind him. Eventually he spied a group of female agents vacating a booth situated in the corner and he made a beeline.

They'd been sitting, chewing in silence for a good few minutes before Wufei decided to tackle the subject once more. He pushed food around with his chopsticks in a purposeful manner so as to not meet Heero's gaze. "How do you know this isn't one of Maxwell's grand schemes-"

"I can assure you, Wufei, if I were concocting one of my apparently infamous schemes, I wouldn't be holding this neat little Prev badge right about now, would I?"

Both men looked up just in time to see a flash of what indeed appeared to be Preventer identification before Duo was sliding into the seat next to Heero, fingers reaching across the table to filch one of Wufei's dumplings.

Heero waited for the explosion, but Wufei managed to hold back any true anger behind grinding teeth. Instead his eyes took in the- indeed very much real- sight of their old companion now sitting across from him and, after his moment of incredulous contemplation, found the badge now lying haphazardly on the table top between them. "How in the hell did you get that?" he ground out.

Duo smirked around the mouthful of stolen food. "Even Preventer needs a consultant once in a while."

"Consultant?" Heero asked then, scooting his body a few inches after realizing the intense proximity Duo had so hastily created.

"I spoke to Une just this morning- she seemed to think the work we'd done in one week outmatched most of what her other agents had managed to accomplish in a whole year." He went to pick up the badge again, waggling it in front of Heero's widening eyes. "Temporary Preventer reinstatement."

Duo let him snatch the card away. Heero studied it, flipped it over in his hand, feeling the slickness of fresh lamination beneath his fingertips. It was real and official and the most utterly confusing thing that had happened since their impromptu coalescence.

"What are you talking about?" Wufei asked, his initial anger seeming to melt into incredulous frustration. He didn't wait for Duo to answer before he turned his gaze onto Heero. "What is he talking about?"

Heero, still staring at the badge clenched between his fingers, gave an unceremonious shrug. He knew, in theory, what Duo was talking about, but he also knew well enough not to share any of the details with Wufei, lest he have the Preventer Handbook violently thrown at him.

Duo took back the card and pocketed it. "Don't worry about it, 'Fei. I'm sure you've got a caseload miles high on your desk back at HQ," he explained, his eyes flicking to the Chinese man in all sincerity. "Mind if I borrow Heero for a sec? I promise I'll bring him back in one piece."

Wufei didn't have time to formulate much of an answer as Duo hooked a hand around Heero's elbow and proceeded to drag him from the booth and out the front door of the automat.

"Duo," he growled, managing to wrench his arm from the surprisingly strong grasp as they neared the building's corner. "Explain."

The other man did an odd little shrug, turning to lean against the cinderblock exterior with hands behind his head. "Wufei seemed pretty pissed about the whole Preventer thing."

It had not exactly been the statement he'd been looking for, but still Heero let out a rough sigh before responding. "I can understand why. It took him a long time to climb up the ranks there. Think about how it must feel to see you waltz in and practically take back your job with a few shreds of evidence and some fanatical ideas."

Duo shot him a sharp glare, real or exaggerated Heero couldn't be sure. "'Fanatical ideas?' Give me a little more credit than that, 'Ro."

Heero's shoulders slumped, not in the mood for an argument over something so impertinent. "You know what I mean."

"Yeah, I guess." Duo unfurled his arms from their raised position and reached into the pocket of his leather jacket. "You're still up for our little recon party on Saturday, yeah?"

Heero hadn't even bothered with a nod before Duo was shoving a familiar looking earpiece into his palm along with a thin, folded piece of paper.

"Where did you get this?" he wondered, staring at the tech he'd grown accustomed to during his time with the organization.

It wasn't a big surprise when Duo shrugged again, nonchalant. "With Preventer protocol comes Preventer perks."

Heero found his jaw clenching. He pocketed the earpiece and then proceeded to unfold the paper to view what appeared to be an outline of an elaborate looking structure with several floors and even the sewer systems mapped out. Duo had scribbled some notes in near unreadable scratch and highlighted a few areas that would not have appeared important otherwise.

"And the blueprint?" Heero looked up to watch for the  _real_  answer.

Unfortunately Duo gave nothing away. "That's something for me to know and- well let's just say I've got my connections."

These types of roundabout answers were starting to weigh heavily on Heero's mind. He squinted, trying not to actually glare. "Duo, I don't understand why you need my help."

"Geeze, 'Ro. Why don't you just twist the knife while you're at it," Duo laughed out, though there was an odd light in the depths of his eyes. "Seriously, no one's forcing you to do this."

Heero let out a growl. "You came looking for me specifically to ask for my help."

"Yeah, man." Duo rubbed at the back of his neck. "I mean, it's not like I held a fuckin' gun to your head or anything."

"But why, after all this time?" Heero could feel the tension in his voice, painful confusion seeping out of his every pour now. None of it made any sense, this man standing before him made absolutely zero sense. "And to help with a case that has nothing to do with me. Why?"

He watched as Duo thought for a long moment, his brows furrowing deeply. "Because, Heero, you're the best of the best. And you're just sitting in bars wasting away. And I  _needed your help_." The last part came as a low whisper, powerful and almost spat out at him in sharp annoyance.

Heero's fists clenched. He did not particularly enjoy the fact that Duo kept harping on his apparent alcoholism. "You  _needed_  my help," he said then, as calm as possible. "So you could  _consult_ on this case?"

Almost instantly he knew he'd said the wrong thing, pressed the wrong button, gone too far. But it was true, wasn't it? Duo was just using him, that had to be it. Wufei was right, this didn't make sense, he couldn't trust this man, Duo was too unpredictable for that. He'd been  _fired_  from Preventer after all, hadn't he? But then he watched the braided man's eyes dip to the ground, a smile wrap his lips, but not one of happiness or even amusement, no this was much more feral than that.

"I get it. You think the only reason I came to you is so I could get reinstated at Preventer," Duo spoke towards the ground, his lips quivering like he might begin laughing at any moment. But then he looked up, his gaze piercing. "Listen Heero, I've done a lot shit I ain't proud of in my life, but I certainly don't jerk around my friends and manipulate people I care about just for a crummy job I don't really even want." He did laugh then, something cold and harsh. "It's  _just_  consulting- and so I can feel better about things when this asshole is behind bars. Don't you trust me?"

Heero's shoulders slumped as the tension in them began to ache. "You never struck me as the kind of person who'd feel guilty about matters he has nothing to do with."

Duo's eyes managed to brighten then. "Ah, but that's where you're wrong. You know I spent the better part of my childhood living under the care of a Catholic church. What's the old Golden Rule? 'Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.' If I'd never gotten off L2 I myself might have ended up as one of those vics."

Heero's mind flashed back to the image of Sawyer, body laying in the alley cold and dead and naked. His stomach clenched and an odd feeling began to tingle down his sternum, something aching and empty. "I'm sorry," he said, the words feeling fuzzy against the roof of his mouth.

Duo's brow quirked. "Wow, you really have changed, huh?"

"Changed?" Heero found himself asking, genuine confusion marring his features.

"Never mind, buddy." An arm was suddenly snaking across his shoulders, Duo's face only inches from his own. "Will you believe me that I actually  _want_  your help, not just need it?"

At this proximity Heero could see the little flecks of ultraviolet hidden within the man's indigo irises, the tiny crick in his nose from an old forgotten war-injury, the way his bangs hung nearly hiding a faint scar snaking down the side of his forehead.

He nodded once and then, after a heartbeat, added, "I do trust you."


	4. Party Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _It took him only a second to register who his new captive was and only one more second to contract some sort of odd flush at their incredibly close proximity._

Heero could feel the green eyes as they bored into his back from his place standing in front of the brownstone's narrow front window. Only a few moments before he'd had the pleasure of explaining to Trowa Barton exactly where it was that he was going dressed in his old, and rather stiff, tuxedo garb. It had not been a pleasant reaction, but at the same time Heero couldn't be sure of exactly what type of reaction he'd received seeing as how the man was damn near impossible to get a read on, even for Heero.

Trowa had said things along the same lines as Wufei, though in less certain terms. The overt concern the ex-pilots seemed to be showing towards him was beginning to weigh on his nerves. They were his friends he supposed, he'd been living between their couches now for the better part of the last month, but still they didn't have to act as though he were a child that needed curfews and looking after.

With Trowa he had early-on suspected it had something to do with Quatre, that had seemed to make the most sense. On his own Trowa probably couldn't have cared less. Let the man make his own choices, he might've said, just so long as he doesn't self-destruct again.

But Quatre was a definite influence; after all, it was he who had seemed most concerned for Heero following his breakup and then most recently his unemployment. Of course he'd only been the front runner until Duo had magically reappeared to physically wrench him off of his bar stool, yet so far chastisement was not in play behind his particular motives- at least as far as he could tell.

Heero sighed and tried his best to ignore his current roommate, knowing thankfully that Trowa wouldn't have anything out unless he was prompted into the argument in a very direct manner. That was at least a positive, probably. Wufei would have had him behind Gundanium locked doors by now- or at least put up a good effort. He wondered vaguely if Duo knew just how much undue stress he was causing everyone. Actually, if he didn't know already, he'd have probably enjoyed hearing it.

But they were all just doing their best weren't they? He probably didn't deserve any of their hospitality at all, much less their warnings when it came to the new and vague way he suddenly seemed to be passing the time. Though truthfully- Duo or not- he didn't much care.

A car pulled up out front, one he did not immediately recognize, but still somehow knew to belong to Duo. He left without saying a word to Trowa, closing the door behind him, and inspecting the vehicle as his dress shoes clicked against the building's front steps and walkway. New model sport's car, sleek but not at all flashy, black in color, no license plates only hand printed tags taped against the back window's interior.

At one time in his life Heero might've said something, inquired about the vehicle, but instead he just filed the little oddity away in his mind for later use. He slid into the passenger seat and turned to Duo. "You're fifteen minutes late."

There was a low hum of grinding electric guitar playing through the radio. Duo turned to him with a dark smile and ignored the complaint entirely. "Well, Yuy, don't you clean up nice."

Heero hadn't thought twice about his appearance, merely donning the tux for the occasion as he was told to do. But now, staring at Duo through the dim shadows created by a street lamp filtering in through tinted windows, he realized that yes, they  _both_  cleaned up well.

Black pants hugged the other man's slender legs, the lapels of his jacket shining with movement, the ensemble matching that of Heero's own save for the black dress shirt and plum tie hanging down Duo's chest. After a moment Heero swallowed, averting his eyes out onto the road, before fingers reached up to adjust the bow tie suddenly too tight around his neck. They'd not seen each other in clothes such as this since the horrid uniforms they'd had to wear during their time hidden away in boarding schools during the war.

As the car lurched forward Heero tried his best to calm his sudden nerves, noticing how cautiously Duo was driving now that they were presumably taking his personal vehicle and not an expendable rental. He could feel the car humming beneath him and watched as the other man's hand moved with ease to control the gear-shift, the motion fluid and natural; a flick of the wrist.

Heero swallowed hard and realized he'd need more of a distraction than that. "So- this  _gathering_ -" For some reason the words were sticking in his mouth.

Duo's eyes bounced off the road for only a second. "Yes, Heero, you will probably have to talk to people. I know that ain't really you're thing, but you'll just have to go with it."

He shook his head, realizing Duo had mistaken his inability to speak as concern for the impending social event. Heero decided to let that slide though, being that it probably was not entirely un-true. "I just need to know our purpose there."

"Oh, right." Duo flicked his blinker on to turn right onto a street Heero had never heard of before. "You want a mission, eh?"

Heero sighed roughly. It's not really what he had meant, he just wanted to know what the hell it was they were trying to accomplish. But he played along for Duo's sake. "Sure-  _fine_. Give me a mission."

Duo came to stop at a red light and inclined his head to face his companion. "The tentative plan involves some mingling and then I'll create some sort of diversion. That's when you saunter downstairs to those dodgy tunnels on the blueprint I gave you. I'll meet you as soon as I get the chance."

It sounded simple enough, but in his gut Heero knew it would not be as easy as Duo was making it out to be. They took another turn, this time through a large iron gate and up a small driveway towards a large house constructed mostly of what appeared to be white stucco and glass. Boxy and elegant and modern, not exactly what Heero had been expecting.

"Ready?" Duo asked once, voice low as they pulled up under a glass covered car-port.

Heero did not have a chance to answer as his door was pulled open by a man dressed in nondescript clothing, another near identical man on the driver's side accepting Duo's keys and handing him a valet ticket which he pocketed with practiced ease.

As inconspicuously as possible Heero adjusted the strap of his ankle holster and then exited the car to stand next to Duo. His eyes scanned the front entryway lit by several large hanging lanterns, the front door constructed of dark wood with rod-iron hinges and handle. Before either could move forward the door was opened by someone, this time a young woman in the same dark clothing as the valet, an inviting smile on her olive-skinned face.

"Welcome, Mr. Maxwell, Mr. Yuy." She nodded to them in accordance and then swept her hand forward to usher them inside.

Heero's eyes narrowed as he followed Duo, only momentarily distracted by the sway of the other man's long braid across his backside. This was all a bit too much for a simple, intimate gathering. They'd been expected, that much was clear. Duo had said something about a guest-list, but this was again not what Heero had been anticipating at all.

He wrapped fingers around the other man's elbow, bringing lips close to his ear. "I thought you said this was going to be a 'quiet little get-together?'"

Heero felt Duo shrug- noncommittally, of course. "That all depends on your perspective."

He walked forward and Heero fell in step behind him because at this point he really didn't have any other choice but to follow, even into an unknown situation such as this. They made their way through the foray, Duo scooping up two glasses of red wine off a proffered tray and thrusting one into Heero's hand without asking. As they entered the next room, a great-room with vaulted ceilings and spherical fireplace that jutted upwards in the center of the expansive area, they were almost immediately ensconced by people.

It was crowded and Heero felt stifled as they walked further and further inwards towards a back wall made up entirely of sliding glass panels that looked out onto a flagstone patio and seating area. Groups of people stood in clusters and circles, drinking and laughing at one another's stories and offering up some of their own anecdotes in hopes of receiving the same amount of recognition.

Duo was right, this was definitely not 'his thing.' Of course, Heero had been known to rub shoulders with politicians and the Sphere's who's-who, but that had been during his mandatory parade around the room as Relena's fiance, or as a means of creating connections imperative to Preventer advancement. He had never once stepped into one of these situations willingly. He would have never thought Duo had either up until now.

They made their way through another pocket of people, Heero's vision finding a pair of middle-aged women decked out in long, sparkling evening gowns staring at him, hands covering their mouths as they seemed to whisper frantically back and forth to one another. He titled his glass back to swallow as much of the wine as he could before Duo noticed, even if the alcohol was meant to be a prop, part of their minor cover, he didn't much care, he was going to need a buzz to make it through this evening. Accelerated-metabolism be damned.

They'd finally made it outside past the large half-open glass doors and out onto the patio, the evening air immediately cooling the odd flush that Heero had contracted upon arrival, when a familiar voice from their left sent his stomach clenching in realization. It was silly- totally stupid in fact- that he hadn't thought of the possibility before, after all this man was part of the Earth Sphere's most prominent elite. For all he knew Relena was flittering around here somewhere too.

Heero turned to notice Quatre Winner's smiling features first, which he wasn't certain was necessarily a good thing when he then had to tug against Duo's braid to stop the man from his trek, it being the only thing he could get ahold of in time.

Duo stopped abruptly, a hand reaching back to catch Heero's wrist on instinct before he turned with a scowl only to have the scathing look be forcibly replaced with one of surprise as his eyes fell onto their blond friend.

He had opened his mouth to speak but, as impossible as it seemed, absolutely nothing made it out. Heero was smugly satisfied that he apparently had not been the only one to miscalculate the possibility of running into Quatre here at Emir's 'quiet little get-together.'

So instead Quatre decided to take the initiative, his smile only faltering for a fraction of a second. "Heero, Duo- what a nice surprise."

"Surprise is right," Duo was muttering just underneath his breath before Heero's elbow made sharp contact with his ribs.

While Duo grimaced, Heero nodded and fixed a pleasant expression on his face. "It's nice to see you, Quatre."

"Yes," Quatre's voice seemed almost out of breath, his eyes flicking for a moment between the two before fixating on the braided man. "And Duo, I hadn't realized you were here on earth."

The statement was somewhat of an oddity to Heero. He'd thought he was the only one in the dark about Duo's sudden reappearance, but perhaps that was not exactly the case. He made a mental note to inquire more in depth with Trowa and Wufei in that regards later.

"Moved here a few months ago," Duo responded, his mouth forming a grin that did not reach his eyes. "I've been kinda busy though, sorry I didn't call or anything. In fact, I only just got around to visiting Heero last week."

"I understand." Quatre was trying his best to stay neutral, though Heero could see the immense confusion welling behind the composure. That too was filed away for later use. "It is good to see you both here- are you acquaintances with Cyrus?"

Quatre had always been a master at strategy and diversion, it was probably what made him such a good politician and representative. Heero wanted to steer the man back toward the Duo issue, his curiosity now piqued, but he knew he couldn't press his luck, especially not now with the subject of his curiosity standing directly next to him.

Instead Duo just gave a non-committal shrug. "We're acquainted with him, yes."

Definitely not a lie. Heero's mind registered the odd catchphrase Duo had toted around with him back when they were teenagers. But instead of being fond, the memory made his stomach clench. Then he wondered what would happen if Emir popped up in the midst of their conversation, but his minor concern was wiped clean as he watched Quatre's eyes becoming distracted by something across the patio- presumably his initial destination before being so abruptly forced to make chit-chat with a man he'd not seen since the disintegration of their Gundams.

"We'll let you go," Duo said then, his smile beginning to crack a bit at the edges. "Plenty of time to catch up now that I'm dirt-side."

Quatre gave a funny little nod, eyes turning to Heero as if in search of reassurance, before his hand came to rest at Duo's elbow. "Yes. I'd like that."

And then, just as quickly as he'd manifested, he was gone- nothing more than another suit in the crowd. Duo let out a breath that almost sounded relieved.

"When was the last time you saw each other?" he asked rather abruptly, not bothering to look at Heero, his eyes somewhere else entirely.

"Hn." Heero brought his own vision to the braided man's features, unnecessarily. "Not long, maybe a month or so."

"Oh." Duo turned to him only for a second, before turning another thirty degrees and taking up their trek from before. "Huh."

The clear confusion there didn't go unnoticed. Heero kept pace with him. "What?"

Duo's shoulder bumped against his own, perhaps on accident. "Oh, nothing." Heero just waited the three seconds necessary for the other man to continue, his mouth never quite closing in preparation for more words to tumble forth. "I always just thought I'd had you pegged as the most anti-social out of all of us- and now look, I guess it's me, huh?"

He wanted to ask why that was. Wanted desperately to understand the goings on behind those indigo eyes now once again scavenging the crowd for what they desired. But Heero knew he wouldn't ask, probably couldn't ask, and definitely shouldn't. So instead he threw back the rest of his drink, placing the empty glass on a tray as it passed overhead.

They were edging the side of the house now, the patio wrapping to come towards a small corner bar and oval shaped fire-pit centered in the last remnants of flagstone before the ground turned to clean cut sod.

"At least Quat's too considerate to ask too many questions," Duo added then, albeit a bit unnecessarily it seemed. For some reason, the man's mind seemed to be stuck on a loop.

Heero tested the waters. "If he had, what would you have said?"

Duo gave a one-armed shrug. "Some bullshit about you and your connections I suppose."

His  _connections_ \- Heero ought to have scoffed at that. Instead he just scowled. "You cannot continue to drag me into this game of yours."

"I've said it before and I'll say it again, you had plenty of chances to just say 'no.'"

Yes, yes he had hadn't he. And yet, here he still was. It was a funny little realization that seemed to keep popping up. He was beginning to seriously hate the man for it.

Heero's lips parted in hopes of formulating some sort of weak argument, but Duo's hand raised to shush him. "Emir," he whispered, flicking fingers forward towards a rattan couch laid out behind blue-hued flames licking upwards at the starlit sky.

For some reason Heero had been expecting to find a gluttonous, overweight man with a receding hairline, but instead when his vision was directed at Cyrus Emir he found a broad-shouldered behemoth, tanned skinned with oily black hair, sharp, white suit and a layer of gold chains clinging to his thick neck.

He realized quickly that Duo had seriously mis-briefed him for this mission, but as the braided man began to walk ahead by a few paces, something appealing in his swagger that Heero tried hard to ignore, he also realized that he really had no way of going back now. In for a penny, anyways.

Upon their approach, coming up single-file, Emir rose from his seated position, ushering away the woman that had been previously hanging on his arm. His dark eyes glinted against the fire lighting his square features and Heero couldn't stop his fists from clenching at their sides as the man's eyes studied the way Duo's legs looked in those slacks.

"Mr. Emir." Duo approached with a genial tone, a smile plastered on his face, and eyelids just a bit too hooded.

The man actually laughed at that. "Please, call me Cyrus."

They were standing directly in front of him now, Emir having angled his body to greet them, his eyes studying Heero for a brief moment of recognition before flicking back to Duo.

Emir's smile grew to include his incisors. "I've been waiting all night to inquire as to my supreme luck at having the unexpected company of so many former Gundam pilots in my home."

Heero decided expressly that he did not like how this man spoke- other than the fact that he much preferred the title of ex-Gundam pilot over ex-Relena-Peacecraft-Darlian-fiancé.

Duo, on the other hand, allowed a pinkness to flush his cheeks, feigning embarrassment at the man's words. He was good, better than Heero remembered actually. "I'm flattered, honestly. Really, I didn't think you'd recognize us- it's been years now."

Emir made a little sound of disagreement in the back of his throat before waving them to take a seat. "You're quite distinguishable, if it's not too bold of me to say- besides what I see in the tabloids these days of course."

Heero knew the last comment had been pointedly directed at him, specifically. But the first one had most definitely been for Duo. He watched as Emir stared as the man pulled at his thick braid, snaking it over his shoulder to rest against his chest, trailing down to pool in his lap. Duo played with the tufted end, twirling strands of chestnut hair between thin fingers. Heero had to admit that his effort was quite commendable- Emir was suddenly transfixed.

Duo's lips quirked in all innocence. Heero finally sat next to him, though his presence seemed entirely unnecessary now. "You've got a nice place here," Duo said, his voice breathier than usual.

There was a compulsion to start rolling his eyes, but Heero stopped himself, almost flustered at the odd slip. Instead he allowed his vision to survey their surroundings, as it should have been doing instead of staring at the angle of Duo's face in the fractured light of the fire-pit.

Nothing out of the ordinary to be seen, though he at one point thought he saw Quatre's bright eyes watching them amidst the crowd. Something he probably should have made himself more aware of. But so what if he was watching them, this really was none of his business- as it wasn't any of Trowa or Wufei's for that matter, either. Heero made a sweep of his fingers up to his lapel, brushing at an imaginary spec of dust, to check that the blueprints were still secure in the hidden breast-pocket.

He was just about to return his focus back to studying Duo, when he felt an elbow jamming itself against his ribcage. Heero's immediate natural instincts told him to grab the offending appendage, bend, twist, break- but he stopped himself after a heartbeat of understanding.

Duo was staring at him from the very corner of his eyes, Emir busy retrieving a pair of gold-rimmed champagne flutes from a waitress at his shoulder, a sloppy looking grin wrapping his wide lips. Oh, of course. This was the distraction, this was his opening.

Heero stood and Duo returned his attention back to the large man on his right. For a moment he thought about feigning a phone-call or possibly making an excuse of mingling elsewhere, but it was clear that neither would be warranted as Emir seemed to not have even noticed the man standing mere feet from him. Eyes only for Duo, as seemed to have been the prevailing plan that he'd only just now been informed of.

The blueprints he'd committed to memory- because really he'd needed something to do during his time spent in Trowa's brownstone other than making his way through the man's quite extensive collection of erotic paperbacks- but he'd stowed the map on his person in such an event as the one he was encountering right now.

He'd entered into the hallway utility closet- only after having to dodge several busy-bodies inquiring as to how he could possibly ever dream of not marrying the metaphorical Queen of the World, finally able to tear himself away as Duo's muffled voice crackled angrily through his earpiece- and now here he stood under the glowing light from a bare bulb overhead staring around him at absolutely nothing but old stone laden walls.

Frustrated, Heero unfurled the blueprints to stare down at them with narrowing eyes. This was it, clearly denoted right there and even scribbled with something nearly intelligible by Duo's quick scrawl, but no other information was provided as to how this musty closet led downwards into the 'dodgy tunnels' he was supposed to be surveying.

Heero growled under his breath, stuffing the paper back into his jacket, before coming to the supreme realization that this should not be this hard- especially not for him. Could it be that he had become this soft, this useless since his sudden reassignment? He tried not to notice Duo's smirking lips in his rearview.

Instead Heero ran palms against the wall next to him, ignoring the unknown moisture that clung to his skin on contact. He trailed fingers upwards, downwards, all the way into the corner, trying to find something, anything that might signify a hidden doorway, a button, a lever, a-

He'd apparently not been thinking very clearly, his mind elsewhere fighting off sarcastic remarks like bullets from the imaginary braided pest his subconscious had dreamt up, but suddenly the floor beneath his feet was giving way, his thumb slipping against some semblance of a stone that was, in fact, not a stone at all. His body stiffened at the stumble, arms flattening behind him to lessen the momentum of the fall until he'd managed to catch himself halfway down a very steep set of slick stairs.

After a second to collect his rattled thoughts, Heero inched forward, taking the steps as carefully as possible, the shadows affording him little visibility. If someone had informed him three months ago that he would be sneaking around some rich guy's sewer tunnels at the request of Duo Maxwell he might've broken their nose.

And even though it was odd and he still wasn't entirely sure what it was that he was looking for Heero stepped off the final stair and onto a cement lined corridor, eyes darting to the walls and ceiling in search of cameras or any type of security, though he wasn't certain why anyone would install that kind of tech down here in this underground wasteland.

He'd pulled his gun on instinct right after the fall and as he ventured forward into the shadows only barely lit by what looked like emergency LED's strung against the wall, he nosed the pistol ahead of him, keeping his hands and mind steady.

But Heero had not been expecting the body that suddenly- and soundlessly- backed up straight into him. On impulse he spun, fighting back the sensation of shock that sparked through his muscles, reaching out and grabbing ahold of his apparent attacker, thrusting the body backward into the wall, and bracing one arm over a quivering throat and the other bringing his pistol to an upturned nose.

It took him only a second to register who his new captive was and only one more second to contract some sort of odd flush at their incredibly close proximity.

"Hey, 'Ro. Glad to see you're still quick on your feet," Duo rasped out, fingers clutching at Heero's arm, but not trying to struggle from the intense grip.

With a rush of breath Heero pulled back, allowing Duo's feet to slump back to the floor. "Why do you do things like that?" he growled out, not bothering to reign in his annoyance.

Duo shot him a quizzical look. "Like what?"

Heero fixed him with a stare for only a few extra heartbeats before shaking his head, gnashing his teeth, and re-holstering his weapon.  _Insatiable_ \- perhaps that was the best word for this man. With a rough sigh he started his earlier trek forward with the new sensation of eyes on the back of his neck.

When the shadows grew thicker and the darkness of the tunnel seemed to envelop them completely Heero stopped short, eyes focussing on something ahead of him, something wooden and fairly recognizable- a door.

Wordlessly Duo came to stand next to him, reaching into the pocket of his slacks to retrieve a small bag of some sort of fine, white powder. At first Heero thought to inquire, but as soon as fingers were maneuvering to gather a handful of the stuff he understood without explanation.

He watched as Duo carefully allowed the talc to settle against his upturned palm, then brought his mouth close to give a harsh breath and send the little particles out into the air before them. If there was any form of security not visible to the naked eye, the powder would reveal it.

But as they stared, barely breathing next to one another, nothing but the door itself could be seen. Perhaps they truly were just sneaking around in someone's sewer. Maybe their investigation should consist of the rest of the entirely-too-large mansion. But of course, then why have such a secretive and impossible to identify entrance? Heero did not appreciate how rapidly his curiosity could be piqued by the likes of such things as this.

"Ready?" Duo was whispering in his ear, pulling a large, glinting knife from an unseen sheath. Heero went in retrieval of his gun, unspoken protocols now circulating in the damp air between them.

He didn't bother with an answer, instead his foot was already braced against the door, resting just under the meager looking handle. Heero tested with a tap- hollow core. It only took two steady kicks from his powerful leg to splinter the frame, earning him an appreciative laugh from Duo as they both came to either side of the doorway, backs to the wall, weapons at the ready.

But all was silent and pitch dark and there was absolutely no sign of alarm or enemy.

With a frown Duo tilted his head around to spy into the room they'd just busted into when suddenly his body appeared to fall forward, a yell coming from within the depths of the room and the sound of a gunshot following suit.

"Duo!" Heero leapt into action, impulses overriding any residual training from J and Preventer. He came into a crouch within the blackness only to have his eyes burned as a large overhead light was flicked on.

He blinked after only a second's hesitation, squinting vision coming into brutal contact with the gun barrel resting directly between his eyes.

"And here I thought I'd been such a gracious host." Emir was sneering down at him. "I guess it wasn't good luck after all- but it seems there may be a few less ex-Gundam pilots wandering the Sphere after tonight."

If Duo hadn't already been shot, Heero was  _so_  looking forward to getting the honor after navigating his way through all of this _bullshit_.


	5. Themes Of Diversion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Speak of the devil, see the devil._

In fact, Duo hadn't been shot, which Heero came to find out seconds after he'd been made to stand and drop his weapon, begrudgingly placing interlocked fingers behind his neck glaring first at Emir and then just past him towards the braided man keeping up quite a struggle against a thug two times his size. No matter to Duo though, apparently he still played by the notion that the 'God of Death' was entirely invincible.

Emir spun then- as an SMG was leveled at Heero's chest- to face the muscular man trying desperately to wrangle thin, but apparently powerful, arms and flailing legs. The thug had just managed to dodge a powerful backwards thrust towards his nose when a pistol whip to Duo's skull finally- and literally- knocked some sense back into the man.

"And to think I considered your flirting genuine, Mr. Maxwell," Emir muttered, the words sounding as disappointed as they ought to have coming after Duo's quite convincing performance on the patio just moments before.

Duo allowed his body to slump forward, large arms wrapping around his chest awkwardly at the new position, before shaking his head a couple of times to clear away the fog. Heero's raised arms tensed upon seeing the thick trickle of blood bubbling down the side of his companion's forehead, but he managed to hold back for the sake of forgoing anymore unnecessary injuries.

"So you're just gonna kill us then? For doing a little snooping?" Duo looked up at the man through his bangs, lips quirking dangerously. "If you weren't acting suspicious before- now you'll certainly have Prev breathing down your neck."

It was a good bluff, but Emir did not appear to want to play the game that Duo was offering up. Instead he turned his vision back towards Heero, coming to stand next to the man holding him at close-range gun-point. "Mr. Yuy- may I ask how it is that you have stooped to the level of galavanting around with scum like him?" He threw his chin towards Duo and Heero choked back a growl at the comment. "Last I heard, you were a valuable member within the Earth Sphere- a highly praised agent and fiancé to the former Queen."

If degrading Duo didn't do it, then that last comment- which he was beginning to grow quite tired of lately- set Heero's blood to boil. "Do not talk about me as if you know a thing about my life," he spat out through clenched teeth, eyes narrowing, but hands staying firmly in place behind his head.

Emir gave an unappreciative little sniff and then angled his body so he could address both of his captives at the same time. "It seems unreasonable to me that two ex-pilots have only the motive of curiosity to go sneaking around where they do not belong."

"Bingo!" Duo snorted out, thrashing once against the meaty arms clenched around him for added measure. "You gonna share with us your big dastardly plan right before you pop us off like the good B-rated villain you are, Emir?"

For a moment Heero thought that Duo had crossed a line as he watched Emir's face contort into a wrinkled scowl, but then the man let out a deep bout of laughter, taking the steps necessary for him to bend down to face Duo's unreadable eyes. "And what is it that you would like to know, doll?"

Duo smiled up at him, something sweet and sickening in the gesture. He ran a tentative tongue over his bottom lip and observed Emir through thick lashes as the other man's thumb came to brush against his thin jawline. Heero thought he might be sick at the sight, but then Duo was speaking, his voice full of unexpected venom.

"Did you kill Bryn Sawyer?"

If he hadn't been certain before, Heero felt positive that a line had been crossed now. He could see the finger against the trigger of the SMG pointed at his chest becoming less steady. He knew he would have to act fast to right the situation if Duo kept this up.

But Emir just gave a quiet smile, his hand brushing down Duo's chest. "Not I personally, darling- unfortunately. I may have an idea of who did, though I'm afraid you and Mr. Yuy won't be sticking around to find out."

Just as Heero was calculating the amount of time he'd have to dodge an automatic bullet screaming towards his heart, the entire room was plunged into thick darkness.

Three things happened then. One: three shots rang out- and when Heero did not feel the burning impact or blood blooming from any personal bodily injury he narrowed down the percentage that the weapon having been directed at himself or at Duo's probably already escaped form to a very small one. Two: he heard the sound of bodies going down all around him, that identifying thud of flesh hitting the ground in an unnatural way. Three: a hand clasped firmly against his shoulder before he'd had much time to identify an exit route and he was being pulled backwards, feet stumbling only momentarily, before his fingers launched out to grasp at a wrist too small to have been Emir's and yet still somehow familiar.

On instinct he was about to hurl the unknown body behind his own up and over his shoulder just to ere on the side of caution, when Quatre Winner's voice was snapping in his ear. "We've got no time for sparring now, Heero. Get a move on!"

Shock overriding anything else, Heero released his grip and turned in the darkness towards the voice to trace it out the doorway from whence they had first come into this ordeal. Because of the sudden lack of light he wasn't certain as to the whereabouts of the braided man he'd been so blindly following, but there was a certain energy radiating close to his body that spoke leaps and bounds more than words of reassurance would have.

"Here!" a voice shouted abruptly somewhere up ahead, the accented tone echoing through the underground tunnel.

Momentarily distracted, Heero didn't at first register the fingers that found his wrist, touching there gently, as if testing to see if he were real or not. He turned in the dark to be met with the glint of indigo eyes staring at him through the shadows. They'd gone wide and unreadable for a few seconds before blinking the oddity away and then flicking towards the growing sound of rapid arabic in front of them.

There was a ladder leading to the surface, something Heero had missed upon his arrival into the tunnels, perhaps something Duo had missed as well. He took the rungs as rapidly as possible, following boots of men still foreign to him, until he managed to feel a cooling sensation of fresh air hit his face.

Heero was pulled up by meaty hands that let him go forcefully to reach down for the final straggler to their bizarre little convoy. He turned in a circle, eyes studying the surrounding area- trees and undergrowth and a worn looking maintenance shed- until he came face to face with Quatre, though a scowling version that he was not entirely acquainted with.

"I won't bother with the obvious questions," the man hissed out, arms crossed over his pressed dress shirt and shining navy jacket. "Because I know you won't be forthcoming with any of those particular answers."

The statement, as startling as his angered tone was, was not something that seemed to warrant any sort of response. Or else Heero was just ill-equipped to provide one. But then there was Duo, standing between them, that smile on his face yet again.

"Quatre, you're a real life-saver, literally. But did you have to go and shoot the guy?"

Even around Duo, the blond's scowl did not waver. "The Maganacs do not take chances," he replied, eyes gesturing lightly to the men that Heero now somewhat came to recognize from times past. "Besides, it sounded as though you were not going to be receiving the intel you hoped for from Emir anyways."

Heero felt taken aback, but if Duo had the same reaction it didn't show. He simply shrugged. "Who knows- maybe you're right."

"You need to learn to take more precautions- I won't always be here to watch your back." Never in his existence had Heero ever heard Quatre speak in such a manner. He couldn't tell if it were intimidation or pride that wracked his subconscious at the realization.

At that Duo frowned. "Look, I didn't request your back-up-"

"Master Quatre, we need to leave this area." It was the largest man who'd chosen to intervene in the increasingly heated conversation.  _Rashid_ , Heero hastened to remember the name.

Quatre turned from Duo, his features lightening exponentially. "Of course." He met Heero's vision then. "You best be off as well. It doesn't matter if you or Duo have got some kind of Preventer clearance at this point or not."

But Heero didn't get a chance to inquire further about the repercussions Quatre himself might face before the man and his entourage of bodyguards were slinking through a line of sharply trimmed topiaries. So instead he turned on Duo. "What the  _fuck_?"

Duo's hands were already held up at his shoulders in a sign of surrender. "Let's just say Quat owed me one."

It wasn't exactly the answer he'd been looking for, but it would have to do for now as what Quatre had said was probably true. They needed to get moving.

As expected a commotion had overtaken the mansion, leaving them somewhat of a pathway towards the lot being used for valet. Not bothering with seeking out his keys, Duo typed in a memorized length of digits in the pad at the driver-side door and took to hot-wiring his own vehicle while Heero kept eyes peeled for anyone that might prove a problem for them. Which would probably be a whole slew of people at this point.

As the car rumbled to life Duo chose brazenly to peel out of the parking lot, pointedly ignoring the glare Heero shot his way as he wrestled to close his still open passenger door, and once they'd put enough comfortable distance between themselves and mansion the man actually smirked. "Well that was fun."

Heero let a low growl escape his lips. "If Emir didn't kill Sawyer then the killer is still out there."

Duo's head bobbed in agreement, but the smile didn't fade. "And now we're right back where we damn well started."

* * *

That night he lay on a couch, back aching from the trials his body had recently grown unused to, and thought about how at least this piece of furniture was well-used and soft and not hard as a rock like Trowa's was.

"You have anywhere to stay?" Duo had asked once he'd downshifted, taking a few backstreets to lose any tails they might have gained since their extravagant getaway.

"Trowa's," he'd replied simply, not giving too much thought to the question itself.

Duo had done a little shrug and turned his eyes back to the road in an almost sheepish manner. "Oh right. Well- I mean if you don't want to make the trek all the way back you can come stay with Hild and I for the night. It's closer, anyways."

It was closer, Heero couldn't argue that point. "I don't know if that's a good idea," he'd said.

"Of course it's a good idea," Duo had thrown back. "Besides Hilde really likes you for some unearthly reason- she usually hates any of the guys I- well, anyways, then tomorrow we can go back and see if we can't figure out who Emir might've hired to kill Sawyer. He's gotta have some sort of L2 connection or something."

Yes, it had all seemed like a relatively safe idea- he'd have the couch and Hilde and Duo had their own respective rooms. Plenty of distance, not a burden.

But then they'd walked in the door and Duo had shouted, "Hey, Hild I'm home! And I brought 'Ro back with me!"

The woman had come around the corner with a familiar smirk. "What, is he drugged?"

And that's when Heero had decided that it was, in fact, a very bad idea, but it was also incredibly too late to do anything at all about it.

So he laid on the couch staring up at the shadowy ceiling and trying to detect any patterns in the popcorn effect plastered there. He thought about the party and Quatre and Emir. It bothered him for a few minutes that he didn't feel much remorse for probably having inadvertently killed the man and his guards. But what bothered him more than that was what Duo had said afterwards.

_Let's just say Quat owed me one._

But, how could that be? Unless it was a favor dating all the way back to the war- but even then it seemed implausible. They'd all lost contact with Duo for so many years now, barely a scratch of anything from the man other than reports he probably wasn't authorized to read and Quatre was  _definitely_  not authorized to read. So if they'd not had contact in the past six years, then how could the man have owed Duo anything at all?

Heero let out the deep breath of air his lungs had accumulated, turning on his side and wrapping his arm beneath his head for support. He thought about how he was practically naked and in a practically strange place and how tomorrow he wouldn't have anything else to wear but his tux and that meant he might actually have to borrow clothes from Duo. He clenched his eyes, trying to force himself to feel tired enough to fall asleep and stop thinking about meaningless things such as this.

It hadn't been long, maybe a few minutes, or maybe a few hours for all he knew, but Heero was awakened by the sound of voices trickling into the living room from one of the bedrooms down the hall.

At first all he could make out was a feminine tone- the woman, Hilde. She was saying something muffled and soft and probably none of his business whatsoever. After all the two lived together and the way Duo acted around her, little kisses on the cheek, running out for groceries and chores- it only made sense.

But then came the male voice- Duo. It was deep and unsteady followed by a few horrid sounding gasps, like he was trying desperately to catch his breath, as if a large quantity of water had just invaded his lungs.

Heero sat up on an elbow then, unnerved. If he strained just enough he could make out some of the words Hilde was saying-  _nightmare, sleep, help, Heero_. The last one made said man's stomach curdle where he lay.

And then came another onslaught from Duo. Words frantic and uneven and indiscernible. He was still breathing oddly, in such a way that would lead one to believe he'd just finished the Preventer ropes course in sixty-seconds flat. It was odd, disturbing; Heero wasn't sure what to do with himself. Should he inquire? Try and insert himself somehow? He had a small bit of crisis training under his belt, though that had never exactly been his best subject.

But then his uncertainty was forcibly quelled as the sound of footsteps echoed out into the hallway. Heero lay flat, regulating his breathing, and only daring to crack open a single eye to stare into the dark space of the living and kitchen area through thick lashes.

He watched as Hilde entered first, going directly to the stove to find a bright copper kettle there. Duo followed a few seconds later, heaving his body up onto a wooden stool at the counter. He looked, as far as Heero was concerned, entirely miserable. Even if he couldn't see his face, the way his shoulders hung defeated, the blades slumping forward on a barren back covered in a thin sheen of sweat told all it needed to.

He'd seen this before, the bare skin, but it came back like a memory long since erased. Their time as boys integrating with the masses at a pretentious boarding school, watching as his makeshift roommate tirelessly worked the knots from his hair, skin still damp from the communal showers. Duo had always been puzzling to him, but now somehow he seemed more obscure than ever.

Yes, he'd seen this view before, but never quite so muscular, it'd been years after all and they'd both grown into adulthood. But it was not the sinewy hardness of the man's back or the way his milky skin tugged at sharp shoulders and vertebrae; it was the ink laid into the paleness there, clear even through the shadows of early-morning.

The black lines were delicate and light like the design had been sketched directly onto his skin. There, resting against his the left side of his back, sat an expanse of airy feathers, twisting and nesting together to create a large wing that dipped as low as the dimple above his hip. And then his eyes caught the mirrored design on his right side harboring the same shading, though somehow darker than its sister, the sharp, haunting wing of what he could only equate to as  _death_.

Heero swallowed as he watched Duo thread fingers through the mussed hair at the back of his neck, the braid only half-intact as it dangled limp next to him. This was not the image he remembered, not the image he'd been seeing the last several days since Duo's sudden arrival. He knew that crooked smile, the cocksure attitude, the odd little swagger in his footing, the confidence, the 'fuck you' defiance in those indigo eyes.

And then, as Hilde leaned across the counter to place fingers against the man's arms, Heero suddenly began to feel a sensation of guilt well in his gut. He should not be listening in on whatever this was, should not be making assumptions or judgments, this was not something that he need worry himself with. All that mattered was the case, for whatever-odd reason now, and then the promise that he could go back to his life. The life without Duo Maxwell in it.

He shifted, just a bit, in hopes that the movement might remind the other two of his presence there. As it was, they didn't even flinch. And so, because his mind could not come up with a reasonable way to handle the situation, Heero stayed still and quiet and just listened until he fell back asleep.

* * *

The next morning Heero found himself seated at the very same counter he'd been staring at the night before wrestling with the new emotion of self-reproach that seemed to be holding onto him like a vice, when that woman appeared in front of his eyes again.

"You heard us last night," she said by odd way of greeting.

Heero frowned, blinking once. "What?"

"You may be able to fool Duo, but not me," Hilde explained, as if they'd already moved past his obvious guilt and onto more pressing matters. "I'm pretty good at understanding the way that man can make you feel."

Heero chose not to answer for fear that he might actually agree with what the woman was saying to him. She didn't take it as affirmation or denial, just smiled once and kept talking. "He doesn't like people to know it, but Duo isn't as brazen and strong as he makes himself out to be. Don't get me wrong, he's amazingly resilient, smart, and would walk through fire for the one's he cares about. But, I'm sure you can understand being an ex-pilot yourself, not every night is an easy one for him."

He just kept staring at her, trying to understand why it was that she was telling him this. Sure, he did understand. But that didn't mean this was still any of his business.

Hilde's eyes crinkled at the edges. "He won't admit it, but I think he's developed some pretty heavy PTSD from the war and from his time with Preventer."

Heero understood that too. But it was only natural- or so all the doctors and psychologists kept telling him. He found his eyes drawn to study a half-open cabinet door just behind the woman until the next bit of monologue hit him full force in the chest.

"When he saw that Relena had broken off the engagement- at first I think he was actually kind of relieved, if you want to believe that. But then, after what the tabloids did to you, he just about lost it." Hilde gave him a remorseful look, something sad in her light blue eyes. But Heero couldn't quite figure out why she would be feeling such an emotion. It wasn't her upturned life that had been plastered for all to see. It wasn't Duo's either.

Heero decided to take a different route instead. "What happened with Preventer?"

He watched her eyes drop away from him, tried to retrieve the answers he craved, but she just shook her head. "He moved to Brussels not long afterwards, came to stay with me. I've been living off-colony now for almost a year. L2 had become too volatile, even Duo would agree with that. I wanted my business to be legitimate, but it was impossible to keep it that way in such an environment there, so I left." This woman was admittedly just as good at diversionary tactics as Duo himself. Frustrating, but something to appreciate.

She met his gaze again. "I'd like to think he moved here because of me. But I think- I think maybe he came here because of  _you_."

That's what did it. That's what snapped Heero out of whatever haze his mind had been floating in since he'd awoken at the crack of dawn and sat dwelling on what he'd witnessed the night before. Because of  _him_? That defied any logical, reasonable, acceptable idea...but of course, it was Duo they were talking about here.

"Morning!" came a raucous voice from down the hall, as if heralding his own arrival.

_Speak of the devil, see the devil._

Heero had to forcibly bite the inside of his cheek as he turned to meet Duo's bright features. It was a much different sight than a few hours before, but he reminded himself not to bother mentioning it. It seemed Hilde wasn't going to bother either as she had busied herself on searching for something important within the depths of the refrigerator. Probably for the best though. Perhaps their recent conversation was yet another thing to add to the list of things that would be keeping Heero up at night.

"How'd you sleep?" Duo was asking him.

Heero was staring, he knew probably blankly. "Fine," he answered on command.

"Got any plans today?" he was asked as the other man shuffled towards an outdated looking coffee pot.

For a second Heero had to wrack his brain to come up with even the day's date. But then realized that didn't much matter anyways. He hadn't had plans for the last month straight. So, in light of the meaningless internal struggle, he shook his head 'no.'

Duo reached into a cabinet to retrieve a coffee filter, the action bringing the hole-ridden t-shirt he was currently wearing to ride up and reveal a tender line of milky skin on his lower back. "Want me to give you a ride home- to Trowa's I mean?"

Heero frowned. "I thought you said we'd be doing more investigating into Emir?"

Spinning to meet his suspicious gaze, Duo put on a good show of trying to understand what Heero was talking about, then quirking his brows once as he seemingly remembered. "Oh right. I forgot, I've got some personal stuff to take care of today. But first thing Monday, back to the grind, okay?"

It was vague enough that it could have easily passed as not an entirely bold faced lie. He knew and understood how this man's mind worked, it was tricky and subversive. Often his main tactics of distraction went so unnoticed that before you could realize, he'd have you wrapped around his finger and onto a topic of his choosing all the while still holding a compelling conversation or debate. He was smart, a genius in fact, but did not always project it, and that's what made him dangerous.

Knowing this, Heero chose to play along. He agreed to the ride across town and even went as far as to accept a change of clothing- the shirt a bit tight across his broad shoulders- and met Duo's small-talk with a fair bit of his own brief answers. And so by the time they'd reached Trowa's brownstone, he'd managed to have the other man in a good mood, seeing as how his diversionary tactics were, at least in his mind, working on Heero.

Duo actually walked him to the door, which was odd, but probably still all part of the game, the show he was putting on. Heero allowed him in only because he knew Trowa to be long gone at work by now. They stood in the wood paneled entryway for a few heartbeats, Duo surveying the area with quick flashes of his vision, when Heero finally spoke.

"I'm sure Preventer is having a field day at Emir's estate." It was an innocuous observation, a realistic statement that meant the place would be swarming. A warning of sorts.

He watched Duo watching him, watched those eyes as they twitched almost unnoticeably at the words. The braided man gave him a tight grin. "Yeah, probably won't have clearance till tomorrow once the bodies are taken care of. But, that's consulting for ya."

Heero nodded in casual agreement. "Better then that you have other things to take care of today."

He knew he was playing with fire now, the little unspoken conversation taking place between them in the foray blaring against his eardrums. But Duo played his part well. "Funny how that works," he said. "Now you just sit tight, Heero. I'll be in touch later."

Heero nodded, but once Duo had left he was moving. He was certainly not going to 'just sit tight.' Not when the man was going galavanting off doing exactly what he said he wasn't going to be doing. Or something like that.

* * *

A half hour later Heero found himself crawling through the underground tunnels he'd navigated the night before, this time at least a bit more suitably dressed for the task. He'd managed with ease to bypass all of Preventer's little security measures and tape to make it down here- after all, he'd had a hand in creating those protocols in the first place, even if Duo could probably say the same. But two could play at this game.

He was on high alert, eyes seeking out a sign of his prey or a minor slip up by the man who claimed God-like brilliance in the stealth department, when the faint whisper of a sound pulled his attention sharply behind him.

Only to be met with nothing, which was mildly disappointing. Still looking behind him, Heero took a single step backwards and straight into a hard wall of flesh- by initial instinct the body was over six feet tall, wide, and built like a brick house- not what he'd been expecting at all.

Heero spun on his heel to be met with a face that he did, in fact, recognize immediately, however strange it seemed to be. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" the man growled down at him.

"Preventer business," Heero answered gruffly.

The man eyed him, studying him in the shadows until his own realization hit. "Heero Yuy," he bit out in near surprise. "You're the reason Maxwell quit and came running back to earth."

But Heero didn't have a chance to ask questions, or defend himself from the odd accusation, when a huge fist came barreling towards his midsection.

Odd, had this been what it felt like for Duo all those years ago? He didn't have time to mull over the irony as another meaty fist rocketed into his jaw. The last thing he remembered hearing was that strange drawl echoing through his spotting mind. Heero was pretty sure it was saying something along the lines of 'karma's a bitch.' Or something like that.


	6. Right Hand Slip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _"I've just been handed a homicide- it's got all the traits of the case Maxwell's somehow roped you into."_

"Wow, Heero, you must really be getting soft. You finally back to the land of the living?"

That was the first thing Heero heard after his mind cleared away the blackness and his eyelids tried to peel themselves open. It was not exactly the most pleasant way to wake up, especially with Duo's snapping fingers hovering over his nose like an annoying little reminder as to just who seemed to be in charge here.

So Heero growled and swiped out to grab ahold of the braided man's wrist in a vice grip, earning him a surprised yelp. He finally managed to open his eyes just in time to see Duo's anxious expression before it melted back into that mask of sardonic, 'I don't give a fuck' attitude.

He let Duo pull away from him then, reaching his hand up to wiggle his jaw a bit experimentally. It was perhaps more sore than he would have expected. Heero hated himself for thinking that the annoyance in front of him could possibly be right about his current state of being.

"Want me to kiss it better?" came a voice cooing in his ear and before Heero could react there was a pair of warm lips pressing at his jawline.

He jumped back, recoiling at the sensation as heat seemed to envelop his entire body. Heero heard the man release a soft chuckle at the reaction, but his mind was too far ahead of him now to be stopped- even if the playful kiss had been innocuous at best.

"Why did you tell me you were fired from Preventer when you really quit?" Heero spat out, tongue thick from anger as well as mortification, any semblance of filter lost in his racing mind.

Duo frowned, clearly taken aback by the abrupt change in atmosphere. A tongue flicked across pearly teeth. "It was none of your damn business, was it?"

They were in the thick of it now, no thanks to Heero's reckless mouth. He shook his head, the words of the man that had assaulted him coming back vividly now.  _You're the reason_ , he'd said. Heero bristled. "Don't act so self righteous. What was your old motto? 'Never tell a lie?'"

"I don't lie," Duo growled out through a clenched jaw. He'd stepped back and away from the chaise Heero found himself to be reclining on, physically distancing himself.

Eyes flicking over the space, Heero watched him. They were occupying the room they'd been held in at gunpoint. "You said you were fired- lied straight through your teeth-"

He could see every tendon in Duo's arms constrict as his fingers curled into fists at his side. "I  _never_  said that, Heero.  _You_  did, remember?"

Heero sat up then, rubbing a hand tentatively over his midsection. "But you-"

"I didn't." Duo crossed his arms defiantly. And suddenly Heero could see the knife in his hand, blade shining and clutched between two casual fingers. "You filled in your own blanks, I just didn't refute anything."

Head shaking, Heero found himself entirely confused as to how this conversation had ended up where it had. His eyes never left the unhidden weapon. "How is that any better than lying?"

Duo shrugged, but didn't have any response other than a twitch of his lips. He unfurled his arms, the knife flicking in his grasp once, blade twirling against his knuckles before it was caught and stuck back into the holster at his ankle like he'd simply forgotten he'd unsheathed it.

Heero let out a long breath and, in hopes of reconciling the situation, changed the subject. "Why is Walter Lannon here?"

At first he wasn't sure he was going to receive an answer as Duo's teeth just ground together, face calm, but eyes piercing into him like the glowing orbs of his long-forgotten Deathscythe. Maybe he was contemplating the action of asking Heero for his help, or else he was imagining the many ways to flay him with the knife- barely noticed now- resting secured once more against his leg.

But then, as if a switch had been flicked inside his head, Duo neutralized, gaze lightening and arms hanging airily by his side. "Walt's been appointed in assisting with the reopening of this case."

Heero's brows knitted. "But he-"

"Look, since you left the palace it seems Relena's done a bit of cleaning house. She appointed a whole new security team and that meant Walt was back to patrol duty instead of guarding her 'royal highness.' I don't know, maybe they reminded her too much of you, huh, Yuy? Anyways, Walt's originally from L2- I worked with him a few years back and swept him up as soon as I heard he was available."

He wasn't sure if it was the pain in his jaw or else Duo's rather presumptuous words, but Heero could barely keep his mouth from gaping open by the end of the explanation. "And Une approved this- just like that?" Walter Lannon had, admittedly, never been one of his favorites when it came to Relena's bodyguards.

Duo snapped his fingers again. "Just like that."

"Why do I get the feeling that the man does not know I am working as your partner on this case?" Heero asked, stretching his muscles and attempting to stand.

There came a laugh at his expense, though he would rather that than Duo's earlier, dark attitude. "He does now- passes on his apologies for clocking you."

Heero was not so sure of the sincerity behind that particular apology. The man had seemed always on the verge of 'clocking' him while he was still engaged to said 'royal highness.' But Duo seemed well-in to trusting him, so Heero held his tongue on the particulars of the matter. "Have you found anything on Emir? I assume that is why you are down here, Duo."

He was met with a smirk. "Yes, and I assume that of you as well. I thought I told you to sit tight?"

Heero couldn't stop his eyes from narrowing. "You can't have it both ways- either you want my help or not."

At that Duo seemed appreciative, shooting him a look as though he were impressed. How considerate. "I never thought you'd be this invested, Heero."

"And I never thought we'd be this heavily involved with Preventer- learn something new everyday," he bit back, the sardonic tone surprising even himself.

But Duo just ignored the comment, choosing instead to chuck a small, leather-bound book into Heero's fumbling hands. "The proverbial 'little black book,'" he said by way of explanation. "Didn't think people actually used shit like that nowadays."

Curiosity inescapable, Heero cracked open the small journal to find pages and pages filled with sweeping, cursive scrawl. On some there were names, corresponding numbers or addresses. On others simply notes, lists, observations inexplicable without some kind of context. He looked up. "Emir's?" he asked, unnecessarily.

Duo nodded, but before he could come back with much more the sound of a cellphone ringing interrupted them, startling Heero until he realized that it was actually his own. He frowned as he pulled the device from his coat pocket; no one ever called him anymore, there simply just wasn't any need. His frown only deepened when he read the caller ID.

"What?" He probably should have answered in a different manner, but he'd already concluded it to be some sort of check-in call to make sure Duo hadn't fucked him over yet or something of the sort.

Wufei met his roughness with his own perfected brand of it. "Yuy, where are you?"

"Earth. What's this about?" Heero was impatient- and a bit snarky- and that seemed to pull at Duo's inquisitive nature, the man's attention piquing instantly from across the room.

There was a sigh on the other end, but not as exasperated as he was predicting, all things considered. "I've just been handed a homicide- it's got all the traits of the case Maxwell's somehow roped you into," Wufei replied, rather evenly.

He didn't waste time asking how Chang knew those details- he'd have no doubt done some looking-into straight after their recent luncheon and with his clearance the case wouldn't have been too hard to drum up, especially considering it's abrupt re-opening.

Heero wasn't sure if Duo had actually heard the explanation or else just wanted to cause him grief, but then all of a sudden he was rushing over, hand outstretched towards the cellphone he was still holding to his ear, albeit a bit apprehensively. Heero batted away insistent fingers and turned his shoulder trying to combat Duo's advances.

"Why are you telling  _me_  this?" he asked Wufei, dodging a fumbling arm.

"Just get here- both of you- I'm sending the coordinates now," came the prompt answer before the call was ended from the other line.

Duo seemed almost disappointed that their new game was over so soon. Heero stared at the phone for a moment before moving to stare into indigo. "Another murder," he muttered out.

"So I heard," the braided man said. "You know for all the shit he gives me, looks like 'Fei trusts me after all. At least a little."

Frustratingly enough Heero found that he couldn't argue. And that realization made not one ounce of sense. What could have happened to have changed Wufei's mind so suddenly?

Duo was halfway out the door and not looking back as the coordinates came in. Heero followed, rubbing at his jaw, and craving a drink.

* * *

"Don't touch a thing, Maxwell."

Wufei was giving them both- but particularly Duo- a solid scowl of utter seriousness. A few other agents skittered around them nervously, leaving a wide berth, while attempting to go about their business like there weren't three ex-pilots congregating just outside of a mess of yellow tape and forensics.

Maybe the use of the word 'trust' had been a bit of a stretch earlier.

"You're acting like I've never been at a crime scene before," Duo spat back, though the venom seemed mostly for show as his demeanor was casual and nonthreatening. "Shit, I haven't been out of the field for  _that_  long."

Heero watched carefully as what little resolve Wufei had worked himself up to having upon their arrival was already slipping dangerously low. He grabbed at Duo's elbow like some sort of arbitrator. "Don't make trouble," he warned as neutrally as possible. Somehow, probably because Wufei had called  _him_  specifically, he felt as though he would be at fault for any pain and suffering brought on by their companion's mouth or otherwise.

Duo just gave him a sidelong glance. "Hey, when do I ever make trouble?" he muttered around a smirk. Then he was simultaneously pulling his arm from Heero's grasp and splaying crooked fingers towards their Preventer host. "'Sides, he's the one who rushed us out here."

Wufei rewarded him with a rather contemptuous quirk of his lips before lifting the tape in order to swing his body under and gesturing them to join him.

The crime scene was situated in a back alley behind what looked to be an entirely innocuous brick building- though Heero was having his doubts, not limited by the way Duo's eyes seemed to travel over the handleless back door with obvious familiarity as they passed by or the fact that they were in one of Brussels' red-light districts. The sun was just settling down across the horizon providing them a golden glow by which to observe the body lying facedown at the end of the grungy corridor, though the warm sunlight did nothing to make the pale skin of the victim look any less dead.

As they neared Wufei was forced- not without a challenging scowl- to present his Preventer identification in order to allow them access further. Heero had to assume the extra security measure was due to his and Duo's presence there, especially as he felt himself eyed up and down by a few of Chang's underlings. But, perhaps for fear of their lives and employment, the three were waved forward after only a few heartbeats worth of hesitation.

The body, Heero noted quickly, was female- odd in that all the victims Duo had discussed with him so far had been male. But it was not hard to see why Wufei had so urgently requested their presence as the faint red lines traced into the soft skin of the woman's backside caught his eye almost immediately.

"Shit."

Heero's mechanical thoughts were interrupted by Duos' rough voice, nearly sounding winded since the last time he'd spoken; no more bravado left in him it seemed. He turned to appraise the braided man and was met with a blood-drained face, twitching eyes, and lips pulled taught in a grim line. His vision was glued to the body a few feet from them, watching it lay there stiff and cold and entirely naked.

Swallowing Heero followed his gaze, unnerved by the way a man who'd seen more than his fair share of death and destruction and victims identical to this could look so horror-struck. But upon closer inspection of the body, ignoring the searching glances from Wufei at his lefthand side, Heero understood the unusual reaction.

She lay there, bruises obvious about her waist and arms, a few unidentifiable lacerations, the rose carved into her skin, the delicate neck, the petite frame, the dark pixie hair mussed but still entirely recognizable.

Heero heard Duo excuse himself, he thought, but for some incomprehensible reason he couldn't' take his eyes off the body. Wufei was asking him something, trudging around confused and clearly at a loss for who he should be looking after as Duo disappeared into the shadows somewhere behind them.

"Heero?" He could hear his name being spoken, but it wasn't registering in his mind. Wufei planted palms against his shoulders, staring into his face with genuine concern now, a rarity. The expression was somehow enough to break Heero's sudden discomposure.

"Have you ID'd the body yet?" he asked thickly.

Wufei studied him for a few more seconds, clearly trying to understand the reaction that had just taken place. "She's a runaway," he answered calmly. "Logged in the system three months ago. Ward of the court, seventeen, Verena Nolan."

Heero felt something within him crack, like the ground beneath his feet was falling away. He breathed out, realizing he'd stopped the moment Duo had taken off. Thank whatever God was out there. It wasn't her. It's not her.

He turned on his heel, brushing off Wufei's steadying hands, and scanned the area. It wasn't hard to find him, standing in the corner shadowed by a large dumpster, waiting and watching. When he met Heero's vision he stepped forward, pinkish light from above illuminating his sunken eyes and sallow features. It looked as though he might've been sick.

Duo walked towards Heero then, creating some sort of confidence with each stride. When he reached them again Wufei was there offering a plastic bottle of water he'd grabbed from a passing rookie. He looked concerned and utterly out of his element; Heero understood the feeling.

Duo drank the entire bottle, wiping lips against the back of his hand when his eyes drifted back to the body. "Heero?" was all he said then, low, inquiring, almost pleading.

The entirety of their day, the heated words shared earlier in Emir's underground tunnels, the tension that had been building between them since the very beginning, it all disappeared with one strong grip against Duo's bicep.

"It's not her," Heero said, firm and unwavering. "It's not Hilde."


	7. A Lesson In Detachment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _"You hide behind jokes and sarcasm because you think your emotions will make you look weak."_

**Chapter 7: A Lesson In Detachment**

He wasn't sure exactly what had come over him. One minute he was staring at the body of a dead girl, the next comforting a man he'd sworn to never allow back into his life ever again. Actually comforting him- something Duo had never so much as needed or asked for, even the many times Heero had found him beaten and broken during the war.

Yes, it was certainly odd, and he definitely didn't need Chang Wufei to tell him that.

"I don't think I've ever seen him like that," Wufei was saying, swirling a limp teabag absently in the ceramic mug before him. "Even suffocating on the Lunar Base- it'd all been a big joke to him, an injustice to his being."

Heero was only half listening now, eyes watching the bathroom door Duo had entered through a moment before, contemplating things he didn't want to be contemplating. They'd opted for a cafe two blocks down from the supposedly innocuous building the body had been dumped behind- the body that was  _not_  Hilde Schbeiker- and were trying to weed through a case that Wufei had no grounds on and Heero wasn't officially a party to.

Shoulders slumping, Heero faced the man across from him. "Shock," he said simply. "He thought it was someone else."

"Yes, I've gathered that much." Wufei frowned. "Hilde- the girl from the war? I vaguely remember an interaction with her on-"

"Libra," Heero supplied for him unnecessarily. A quiver ran down his spine at the memory.

He received a grim nod in response. "It seems, perhaps, that we don't know Maxwell like we used to."

Truer words had never been spoken. Heero had to stop himself from actually laughing aloud at the thought. It was entirely plausible that Duo had matured these past six-or-some-odd years, but that wasn't quite it. There was something else, something unspoken, something being hidden below the surface of that mask he always seemed to wear. Heero remembered what Hilde had said to him- entirely unsolicited- and decided quickly that he needed to change the subject.

"The businesses in this area," he said, grasping at his own cooling mug. "Anything noteworthy?"

That got Wufei to finally snap back into his familiar Preventer mode again, thankfully. "If you're asking whether she worked in one of those clubs I do not have that information as of yet."

"Not gonna find her employment contract or W4," Duo interjected, sliding into the booth next to Heero like he'd done so many days before at the automat. "She was a street-walker, I'll put all my money on that fact."

"Another copycat?" Heero muttered.

"Dirtside like this? Not likely," Duo answered, sipping at the black coffee that had been previously ordered for him. "It's the same M.O. as the others- vic's even got their little calling card tattooed on her. But the Emir connection's severed- he was our copycat angle."

Wufei had been listening, silent and intent up until now. He tapped against the tabletop to gather the other men's attention. "You're still just a consultant on this case, Maxwell. You can't go off making arguments and speculations without first attending to the ' _consulting'_  part."

Duo turned, eyes dark. "I'm fucking consulting with you right now, aren't I?"

Reflexively Heero's hand shot to the other man's wrist, but Duo brushed the concern off easily. "Besides I've got my own Previes with me already-"

"An ex-bodyguard from L2 and Yuy do not count," Wufei shot back, sparing only a small glance towards Heero.

"Une seems to think so."

That was met with a snort. "And now with another body on her hands I'd not be surprised if she changes that view."

"Pray tell, Chang, what do you suggest?" There was a little sneer, but Duo was settling back, letting his shoulders hit the vinyl beneath them with a soft thump, going silent and waiting for an answer.

Wufei took a deep breath before answering. "I can be your reporting officer."

At that Duo gave a dark chuckle, but did not immediately veto the idea. "Yeah? And what's in it for you, huh?"

Heero knew in an instant what was 'in it for him;' it would be a damn easy way to keep tabs on both he and Duo without letting it be seen as something remotely personal. Wufei met his eyes across the table and Heero scowled, but did not interject.

"It is my duty as a Preventer agent to ensure that this case is handled efficiently and to the best of my ability in order to prevent any further bloodshed- on-earth and on-colony alike." Wufei even gave a little innocent simper at the end, the bastard.

It had been entirely practiced, words hammered into the skull of every recruit that passed through Une's shining glass doors. Actually it might've made Heero a bit sick if it had come out of anyone else's mouth other than his own ex-partner's.

Duo's eyes narrowed, challenging. "Nice," came his slicing reply. "I'm betting I don't get much say in the matter being that I'm a  _mere_   _consultant_."

"Why can't you trust that this could be beneficial?" Wufei asked. "I can help."

"Sure, sure." Duo flipped his hand around in the air between them, flippant. "But I ain't  _reporting_ to you. We're on an even playing field here s'far as I'm concerned."

Wufei seemed contented with that, agreeing with a nearly indiscernible look of smugness flashing across his features. Heero had to suppress a groan even as Duo's boot colliding with the side of his leg brought him irritatingly back to the conversation, entirely and unmitigatedly knowing, as the man always seemed to be.

* * *

They left Wufei at the scene in order to deal with some of the messier portions of the case that Duo seemed admittedly glad of not having to deal with on their own. And then their next stop was one that surprised Heero almost too much for it to actually be real.

"Why?" he asked, eyes turning to glare at Duo with upmost suspicion.

"Because I need to ask a favor of him." Ever since they'd left the cafe Duo had seemed on edge and jumpy- his fingers were white knuckling the steering wheel as he drove towards Trowa Barton's brownstone.

Heero grunted, crossing arms over his chest. "What, does he owe you something too?"

Duo's glance of offense was caught from the edge of his vision. "Odd, Heero, either you're being sarcastic or else just an asshole- can't quite figure it out."

At that Heero softened a bit, remembering how distraught Duo had been not more than an hour before. After a few tense moments of silence he swallowed once and spoke tentatively. "Earlier- that girl-"

"I'm fine. Really-  _fine_ ," was the short and prompt response.

Heero didn't doubt that Duo could handle himself- after all he'd seemingly been faring on his own out on L2 for all these years without any help from anyone other than maybe Hilde. But still, the memory of the man's pallid face and wide, stricken eyes was not one he would soon forget.

As they neared Trowa's building, as they parked across the street, as they walked up the slick front steps Heero suddenly began to feel entirely uncomfortable. So far he'd had the express pleasure of dealing with Duo's interactions with two out of the three other ex-pilots. They'd not ended in  _complete_  chaos yet and so he felt somewhat more confident for the third. But still, his gut had suddenly turned itself into ice.

Heero had a key to Trowa's home- as he did with Wufei's because they seemed to have placed some sort of trust in him that he could not quite comprehend yet- and when he opened the door, like he'd done not more than a few hours previous, Duo strode in past him like he owned the place.

Following quickly after him Heero was able to grab ahold of Duo's arm in hopes of having another discussion on the nuances of asking Trowa Barton for a favor when there, suddenly in front of them, stood the particular man in question.

"That's quite a bruise," were the first words out of his mouth, pointedly directed at Heero, bypassing Duo altogether.

Taken aback, Heero's fingers moved up to his jaw, remembering the altercation from earlier now as he felt along the tender skin there. Yes, he could imagine it was colorful by now, though Wufei hadn't bothered to mention it.

"Wrong place at the wrong time, that was." Duo's voice crept past Heero's- now grimacing- expression and up the extra half-a-foot towards Trowa's bland gaze.

"Can I assume that you had something to do with it?" came Trowa's slow and careful response, a lithe eyebrow quirking as he stared expectantly at his new houseguest.

Duo held up hands in a casual sign of surrender. "Hey, I've learned my lesson when it comes to taking swings at Heero Yuy." He smirked then. "We'll just say that someone wasn't exactly _happy_  to see him. All taken care of now though."

And then Duo was brushing past Trowa and into the living room to find a lounging seat on the low, leather couch, propping feet against the coffee table with little regard. Heero's tongue suddenly felt too large for his mouth. "He's come to speak with you," was all he could manage when Trowa sent him an inquiring sidelong glance.

They both joined him in the living room then, Trowa making a point to kick Duo's boots from their ill-mannered perch as he passed, opting for a square-framed armchair across from him. Heero settled onto the couch, as far away from the other man as possible, and sat straight backed in anticipation.

"What is it that you want, Duo?" Trowa wondered, eyeing the man's appearance thoroughly.

Bizarre, the words had almost sounded obliging, nearly accommodating. Maybe that had something to do with Quatre too. Duo didn't seem to have noticed. "Always so quick to assume," he said with a humorless laugh. "Why's it so impossible to think this isn't just a friendly visit?"

"A 'friendly visit' six years in the making?" Trowa seemed less than impressed. "Is that also what you told Heero?"

At his name Heero's body tensed. He watched for Duo's reaction, expecting something defensive, but the other man managed to keep a smirk about his lips. "I needed his help. And now I need yours."

Trowa frowned. "You seem to be calling in a lot of favors lately."

There it was, niceties exchanged. Clearly he'd already spoken with Quatre. Surely he already knew of their party crashing and precarious situation at the hands of a billionaire drug-addict. Embarrassing as that realization was, Heero couldn't help feeling somewhat relieved that they'd not yet been thrown to the curb.

"You know how it is," Duo shrugged, noncommittal. " _Jamais deux sans trois_. Never twice without a third."

That was met with a soft chuckle that had Heero's fists curling. "And the third  _malchance_ \- that's what you need my help with?" Trowa answered, leaning forward to rest long forearms against thin knees, interest suddenly and apparently piqued.

Duo's mouth twitched, realizing he'd succeeded in his baiting. "I need you to go undercover and protect someone that is very important to me."

A flash of understanding hit Heero straight on. "Duo-"

But the man shot him a halting glare before turning back to Trowa who'd not yet responded. "She tends bar at a club along _Rue d'Aerschot_. Make's good money for a night job, but it ain't exactly one of the cleanest joints- if you know what I mean."

Trowa stared, features half-hidden through shrouding bangs. "And you have reason to believe she needs protection."

"That's just about the size of it." Duo smiled, shrewd and cocksure.

After a moment's hesitation Trowa spoke. "I do not think this is in my realm of expertise." Then he sat back in his seat, meeting Heero's eyes before returning his vision to the man now abruptly frowning across the way.

As Duo's brows furrowed deeply, Heero could see some of his mask crumbling. "That's your job isn't it- undercover ops? That's what you do at Prev?"

Trowa rewarded him with a single nod. "Yes, but the locales and specs are usually a bit different than what you are suggesting."

"I'll pay you," Duo said, the words desperate but his voice entirely calm.

That got him another quiet laugh. "I thought this was a favor?"

Duo shot him a dark grin. "Extra insurance."

Heero tried to preoccupy himself with grinding his teeth and trying not to interrupt the odd exchange taking place in front of him. Since when had Duo become so paranoid to think that turning to a fellow ex-pilot to help watch over the woman he happened to live with was an idea worth pursuing?

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Trowa lifted a lean leg to cross over his knee, resting in a casual way. "When do I start?" he said. "And I won't be taking any of your money, so don't even think about trying."

And then suddenly Heero was standing, ramrod straight, and staring at the man sitting so lax across form him. "Trowa- I don't think this is a very wise decision."

And then suddenly he was sounding a lot like Wufei.

Apparently Duo seemed to think so too, sending him an icy look not usually reserved for him. "What's so unwise about it, Heero?" he asked, entirely venomous now.

But Heero couldn't answer because he had no earthly idea why any of this mattered to him at all. Maybe it was the way Wufei and Trowa tried to warn him off when Duo had first wandered back into their lives. Or the way the man kept taunting him and pulling him deeper into a case he had no stake in not more than a week ago. Perhaps it was the odd sensation of heat welling in his gut every time Duo's body gravitated towards his own. Maybe it was the tattoo he had seen amongst the aftermath of a nightmare. But probably, it had everything to do with the words that had continually been circling around his mind, relentless since the day he'd been found in that bar.

_How do you know this isn't one of Maxwell's grand schemes... Duo, I hadn't realized you were here on earth... I think maybe he came here because of you... You're the reason Maxwell quit and came running back to earth... Can I assume that you had something to do with it..._

With a sourness in his throat Heero sank back to the couch, not quite able to meet either man's inquiring eyes. "Nothing. You're right," he whispered out. "This is best- for Hilde."

He could feel something, sense the waves of muffled emotions crashing against the barrier he'd suddenly thrust up between he and Duo. But it didn't really matter, this was better anyways. Heero caught Trowa's stare, his knowing frown and dutifully ignored it as Duo began to softly explain the situation further.

* * *

"Why can we not be the ones to offer her protection?"

It had been an hour since Heero's impromptu outburst and still he hadn't quite been able to shake the overwhelming feeling of unease that had come to nest solidly against his ribcage.

Duo turned to him, light from a nearby neon sign glowing his skin an unnatural shade of violet. "For one thing, Hild knows us and would throw a fit. For another, this allows us the opportunity to do a little recon- desperately needed recon- that Prev prolly ain't gonna fund for us anyways."

They were currently seated in Duo's vehicle, a block over from the club where Hilde was currently working the midnight shift, staring at monitors and tech that Heero knew Duo probably shouldn't have, but didn't bother to inquire on because he'd already used up his one 'out-of-line outburst' for the evening so far. Better to wait until the mood between them lightened a bit.

"But why would they be targeting her?" Heero wondered, more to himself than anything else. "She's not a-  _bed-warmer_."

"Of course she isn't." Duo seemed at first put-off by the comment, but then quickly regained his composure in light of the speculatory air the statement had been made in. "I don't know, Heero. It's just fucking weird- first a kid I grew up with on the streets, then an L2 ward that looks near identical to Hilde. It fits the M.O. but I can't help feeling like there's just something-  _off_."

Heero looked to him through a blanket of shadows. He remember what Wufei had said earlier about having never seen Duo act in such a way as this. It was true, he seemed-  _scared_.

"Status?" he inquired tentatively, almost entirely against his better judgement.

Duo frowned. "Status?"

Heero wet his lower lip with a hesitant tongue and sharp teeth. "What is your status?"

There came a heavy roll of indigo eyes followed by all-encompassing exasperation. "Heero, would you quit talking like a fucking soldier and ask me for once if I'm 'happy as a clam' or 'off the fuckin' deep end?'"

The sarcasm in his words did not go unnoticed. Heero decided, prudently, to change tactics. "Are you sure you're alright?" he ventured again. "Maybe we should be letting Preventer handle this from here on."

"And let 'em foul up the case again? Run in circles till they give up- nah I think I'll take my chances." Duo flicked a finger up to his temple. "Gotta do something to keep the mind young and spry."

Heero glowered. "But if it's getting too personal-"

"Look here, don't be such a worry wart, Heero," Duo supplied with a tight smile. "Unless you're thinkin' I can't handle myself. It's not like I piloted a friggin' Gundam during the war or anything."

"Why can't you just admit that you're bothered by this?" The words shot out of his mouth like a locked and targeted beam canon. Had that even been where he was going with this conversation in the first place?

Duo did his best impression of wary confusion. "What are you talking about?"

With a rough sigh, Heero faced forward to stare out the front windshield at nothing in particular. In too deep, despite all logical odds. He opened his mouth a couple of centimeters. "You hide behind jokes and sarcasm because you think your emotions will make you look weak."

Heero expected an argumentative sneer in response, but what he got was rather more of a meager glare. He wasn't certain which one he would have preferred. "That's not true-"

So he forged on, saying the only thing he quite knew of to say in an argument such as this. "The only way to live a good life is to act on your emotions."

Duo just stared at him, glassy eyed and unwilling to budge. "Maybe I don't want to live a good life," he said, voice thick. "Maybe there's nothing left in my life to make it good."

And that's when Heero let everything else go, relinquished the tight hold he had over his muscles, and heeded his own advice.

At fist the kiss was rough, awkward, lips colliding with teeth and thrashing tongues, but then as familiarity flooded over them it softened, became more tentative and warm and comforting.

Well this certainly was an odd turn of events. Heero's mind kept circling like a carrousel, unwilling to slow down and totally process through all the sensations and questions flying towards him. His brain logged the taste on his tongue, the warmth of another mouth on his own, the slick feeling mingling against his lips.

He'd never quite understood why it was that people enjoyed kissing as much as they did. It felt-  _nice_ , in a certain way. But for him it had always been something someone else wanted, something he obliged and moved with because it was the 'appropriate' thing to do, a signal of sorts, a means to an end in some cases. Heero had never found the pleasure in it, not the way he knew he was supposed to at least. But the way Duo's voice hummed deep at the back of his throat, he understood exactly how it made the other man feel. So he kept on track.

And then there was a sudden, unrelenting sensation of pain- a phantom sensation- that settled heavily against the left side of his abdomen, just under his ribs. But, after a second's worth of contemplation, Heero ignored it, dutifully.

Their mauling picked up heat. It was impossible to get as close as he wanted to, leaning over a jutting gear shift and wayward surveillance equipment, but it would just have to do. Heero pushed into it sending Duo's body backwards in his seat as he shifted to kneel against his own. But then Duo was pushing back, thrusting curious fingers to the back of his neck and tangling in the messy locks there, pulling.

This was so wrong- so incredibly wrong. And yet...

They were pulled abruptly back to reality by a beeping from one of the monitors resting precariously against the dash. After a breathless second of realization clicked in both of their minds, Duo scrambled for his palm-top while Heero attempted ungracefully to find his seat again.

"What's happening?" he managed to ask, voice sounding distorted to his own ears.

Duo's eyes were scanning across the flickering images on the screen in front of him, vid links to the security cameras inside the club. "They were here just a minute ago- just a second ago-" he was saying under his breath, sounding more and more anxious with each passing heartbeat.

He looked up then, meeting Heero's eyes with wide, panicked indigo. "They're gone- Trowa and Hilde- they're not showing up on any of the feeds. They're just-  _gone_."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _*jamais deux sans trois_ \- [French] -Literally 'never twice without a third' - An ominous phrase used when two successive upsets have happened and you expect, due to such bad luck, that a third will inevitably come up.
> 
> _*malchance ___\- [French] - misfortune/bad luck


	8. Intersecting Messages

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Heero's mouth began to run dry as Wufei leaned into his shoulder briefly. "Be careful, Yuy."_

To say he felt guilty would not have been an accurate assessment. That had not been an emotion he'd ever much felt or cared for in his life. But the wrenching feeling of lungs deflating and stomach curdling was enough to make Heero fully understand the definition of contrite.

How had he allowed himself to become so horribly impulsive?  _Act on your emotions-_  it was sound advice, but certainly now had not been the time for carrying such suggestions out. And what emotions had he been acting on anyhow? He was not some lovesick pup nor the hormonal teenager he'd been upon their first go-around- so what had this been about then?

But right now it seemed that the introspective dispute would just have to wait. Duo was halfway out the door already, his ankle sheath catching the neon lights glowing around them, the knife seated there not as hidden as it could have been.

Heero was after him in a second, checking for the Glock at his lower back that had been indisputably bestowed upon him yet again, but not pulling the weapon just yet, even as his fingers danced along the gun's familiar rough skin in anticipation. They made their way together across the street and up the block, slowing their pace as they neared a crowd of smokers and muscle milling outside of the bar.

They had no forceable plan, or at least Heero did not have one. He looked to Duo who was busy eyeing the patrons they passed, gaze raking over them, but then just as quick as they had arrived, they were edging past the crowd and down the narrow alleyway that led between a basement stairwell and the brick facade of the club. It was dark and it took Heero's eyes a couple of seconds to adjust, but upon seeing Duo grab for his knife with a smooth and calculating flourish he too reached for his weapon, adjusting the weight in his hand easily.

But it wasn't until their ears picked up the sound of voices, a scuffle, and flesh on flesh that their hesitant trek became a near full-fledged sprint. The scene they came upon was actually predictable enough, if not a bit clichéd. There was Hilde, leaning against the wall frozen as she watched the men across from her. The disguise clinging to Trowa's muscular body did not leave much up to the imagination as he held a small, wiry figure against the brick, a powerful forearm crossed over a suffocating neck and a knife similar to Duo's own resting almost casually an inch away from the victim's left eye.

"Need a hand?" Duo called out, halting abruptly to observe at a distance. "Trowa?"

Their comrade seemed to be breathing a bit heavier than normal, holding back perhaps- an odd sight for the usually composed man. After a second he stepped back, releasing the body he'd been pinning and allowing it to hit the pavement with little remorse.

Trowa turned towards them, a single sphere of green glinting through the shadows, but he did not say a word. They approached carefully then, Duo's steps veering towards Hilde while Heero made his way towards the man now gasping for air and coughing up an appropriate amount of blood and spittle onto the ground in front of him.

Heero cocked his gun, the sound echoing through the silence. "Who are you?" he asked, not even bothering to know the details as he could predict them well enough in his own right.

There came a few more coughs in response and when the man finally spoke his voice was rough and thin. "I-I'm just the m-messenger, man."

Turning, Heero frowned up towards Trowa who in turn shrugged and gestured towards where Hilde was speaking with Duo in low tones of explanation. "He jumped her when she was taking out the recycling."

"I-I didn't j-jump her!  _Shit_ ," came a wheezing retort from the man at their feet. Trowa fixed him with an utterly blank expression that seemed to terrify more than anything else.

Keeping his gun level, Heero turned over his shoulder. "A message- did he give you a message?" he called out.

Hilde was standing taller now, she swiped at her nose once, and then held out a small folded piece of paper for the other three men to see. Immediately Duo was swiping it from her, but she didn't seem to have the stamina to chastise him like she might've done in a different circumstance.

They all watched as he swallowed once before reciting the message aloud. "Roses are red. Violets are blue. The more friends you invite. The less will pull through."

Duo was speechless for a moment after that, staring down at the paper clutched in his fingers, before stepping towards Heero with a dark gleam in his eyes. "Who the fuck sent you here?" he growled out, vision honing in on the man still cowering against the ground.

"I-I don't know. I swear," the man whimpered out. "M-my John gave it to me- said it was i-important. I-I didn't hurt her though, I s-swear."

"He's telling the truth." Hilde had joined them now, arms folded over her chest. "He didn't hurt me, but he tried to hurt your  _spy_  here, Duo."

At the word Trowa turned towards her with an unforgiving look of indifference. That's when Heero finally noticed the gash cutting through whatever black, mesh shirt was clinging to his skin. It didn't look deep, but there was a thin stream of blood pooling from the forearm wound, dripping down his hand and onto his leathers.

"Shit." Duo turned towards him, but Trowa was already waving him off.

"It's my fault- I was careless," he explained shortly.

Heero had his doubts about that, but decided in light of everything else to let it go for the time being. Instead he pulled a mobile from the pocket of his jeans. "I'm calling Chang."

That got Duo's attention easily enough. "What? Why?" he snapped out, whipping his vision from the knife wound to Heero's hard gaze.

"In case you've already forgotten, he's offered his assistance as a Preventer," Heero shot back, putting the phone to his ear.

Duo was shaking his head, frowning sharply. He held up the scrap of paper. "There's nothing definitive to say this has anything to do with the case-"

"But it seems to have  _everything_  to do with your safety," he shot back before turning away as the other line was picked up. He did not bother to glance at Duo's reaction to that, he could feel it just as well, the shock radiating off of him and piercing through Heero's backside.

Ten minutes and a very unnervingly quiet Duo later Heero found himself faced with a jaded looking Wufei. "We can hold him for a couple of hours at the most, ask him some questions, but if there's nothing to charge him with other than trying to give the Schbeiker woman a letter and questionable self-defense then there's not much else we can do."

Heero understood that well, after all it had not been so long ago that he'd found himself dealing with similar situations in Sanc. But this was different, there was a connection here- if only Duo hadn't thrown the entirety of their evidence out the car window the first time around.

"This is not the first time Duo has received such a threatening message," Heero explained evenly, watching from his peripherals as Hilde was being interviewed by one of Agent Chang's underlings. "The other was warning him off investigating further."

Wufei was frowning so deeply that he came across much older than his twenty-two years. "Do you know for certain that these threats were meant for Maxwell alone?"

"Not certain." Heero shook his head. "But the first was sent to an address only he was accessing. And this one- perhaps Hilde was just the middleman. Or else it was meant as another warning."

"Verena Nolan- the resemblance," Wufei begrudgingly agreed. "But why communicate with Duo? As far as I know Preventer has never received anything such as this."

That Heero had not quite worked out an answer for. He thought about what Duo had said in the car earlier, about the odd connections- the body on L2 that could have easily been his own, the girl's resemblance to Hilde, and now this. None of it quite added up. It had to be connected to the drug cartels, to the other murders, but how?

"Why didn't you tell me about this before?" Wufei had bravely moved to speak with Duo who had been leaning against the wall in silent contemplation ever since Heero had called in their other investigative party.

"It was on my list," Duo responded after a moment's hesitation. Though his vision was not on Wufei, but rather staring past him towards a female agent that was examining Trowa's shallow wound. His eyes were oddly glassy and unfocussed. "Just hadn't gotten around to it yet."

Wufei let out a rather ragged sigh. "Maxwell, snap out of it! You need to start taking things more seriously."

Heero stepped towards them then, coming to rest in Duo's line of sight and finally forcing the man to actually register their presence. He looked up towards Heero managing not to make eye contact and squinted as if deep in thought. "They know I've been working with you. With all of you."

Remembering the cryptic words on Duo's latest message made Heero's mind convulse. Clearly it seemed he was correct, whoever it was behind the notes- the murderer they were tracking or not- seemed to know very adeptly about every move Duo was making.

He watched Duo carefully then, looking at the way his eyes darted between them all without making actual contact, like if his vision rested too heavily on one person it would be a death sentence. The state he had reverted to was similar to that of his earlier panic upon coming across the far-too-familiar body, but yet somehow it was different, more fragile like he might snap at any second.

Heero looked to Wufei then, noticing the concern there in the recesses of his expression as he too took in Duo's startling appearance. Something was definitely wrong here and he was determined to understand what. But, of course, it seemed as though that might have to wait for a more opportune time; Duo still hadn't met his gaze.

Wufei lifted a hand, gesturing in the direction that Hilde was being looked after. "It's late," he said. "You should take her home."

Duo nodded, but it was a forced gesture. When he looked up he finally met Heero's eyes, blinking a few times before really focussing. "Where will you go?" he asked, his voice coming back into its own, more light and less deadened than before.

"I would feel better staying with you-" Heero answered, before realizing the implication behind his words. Quickly he added, "-for Hilde's sake."

Again Duo's head bobbed up and down at its own volition. He pushed off the wall and placed a heavy palm against Wufei's shoulder before muttering, "If that's alright with you, of course?"

Wufei looked almost as taken-aback as Heero felt by the comment. Had Duo sensed all along the tension the others felt when it came to his being around Heero?

Trying not to sputter too much, Wufei answered, "I can't believe I'm actually saying this, but I think that's good idea."

They watched as Duo's shoulders straightened and his chin rose to its normal, cocksure angle before he marched over to Hilde, embracing her warmly and fitting her with a soft kiss on the lips that turned her pale skin visibly pink.

Heero's mouth began to run dry as Wufei leaned into his shoulder briefly. "Be careful, Yuy," he said before maneuvering his way towards an awaiting Trowa and not looking back for a response.

* * *

The next morning, though he might've liked to have one, Heero was not greeted with an educational conversation with Hilde in regards to Duo Maxwell, but rather was greeted with the actual man himself.

Heero had been up for almost an hour before anyone joined him in the sparse kitchen. He'd sat staring as the coffee brewed, mulling over dead bodies, cryptic rhymes in his head, and the feeling of familiar velvet still reminiscent on his lips, trying hard not to focus on the even more disturbing questions that had grown in the back of his mind concerning the man now wandering about the apartment barefoot and still clad in ill-fitting plaid boxers.

"Want some breakfast?" Duo asked, face bright and mouth quirked at the edges.

Heero frowned, noting clearly the difference in personalities from the night previous to now. The mask was firmly back in place. He shook his head. "It's fine."

He watched as Duo popped four slices of bread into a toaster next to the stove, spinning then to fix him with a quizzical look, eyes shining with an amusement Heero found out-of-place. The braided man then walked forward, leaning forearms against the little bar-top to lean in towards the man opposite him. He raised a thin brow. "About last night-"

Having tried his hardest to forget their little altercation in the car, Heero had already prepared the exact response he felt this inevitable situation warranted. "My actions were inappropriate. I provided a distraction that interfered with our investigation. It was perverse, presumptuous- and it will not happen again."

It was as much an apology as he could muster, even if he knew the emotions behind his actions to be unfortunately and problematically true. Heero watched for Duo's reaction, the man just staring at him with that odd amusement. And then suddenly a long forefinger was tapping against his forehead vigorously.

"I will never understand how your mind works Heero Yuy," Duo said with a chuckle. "What's going on in there?"

Heero pulled back with a scowl, flustered by the bizarre behavior and response, but before he could come up with anything to retort the toaster dinged 'ready' and then Duo was turning away from him, almost as if the exchange hadn't even happened at all.

He remembered how Wufei had warned him, but was forced to swallow down his concerns and confusion as Duo ungracefully set down a plate of near-burnt toast in front of him, following suit with a little jar of honey and then his own matching plate across the counter.

Heero studied the food and then studied Duo who was watching him with a knowing smirk. "You gotta eat, 'Ro. Bionic-perfect-solider or not."

Blinking, he watched as Duo retrieved a tiny spoon and spread some of the sticky substance onto his bread. "There's something interesting I found in Emir's little black book last night."

Heero scowled, but forced himself to prepare his own toast, realizing begrudgingly that Duo was at least correct about keeping up his strength. "I thought you would be handing this case over- what with everything that's happened," he said, voice even.

He was met with an unimpressed look. "I thought we already covered this."

"Duo, those messages-"

"They're just trying to frighten us off. Actually, seems pretty amateurish to me." Duo flicked his fingers in the air, brushing it off with little concern.

Heero frowned, chewing slowly. He was not enjoying this roller-coaster ride that seemed to be Duo's many personalities and emotions. "What did you find?" he asked finally, resigning to the fact that the current mood between them was too comfortable to ruin with arguments that would inevitably get him nowhere.

He watched painfully as Duo swiped at a glob of honey on his plate, sucking it off his finger thoughtfully before answering. "You know, technically this should be classified- seeing as how you're not an agent or a consultant like little ol' me-" he reached down and opened a drawer and pulled out Emir's book to slap it onto the counter between them. "-but I guess since you've been such a big help so far-"

"Duo," Heero growled. "If we're going to be  _technical_ , then this evidence shouldn't even be here right now. It should be with Chang-"

"Yeah, yeah." Duo waved him off with a roll of his eyes. "There's this word that keeps popping up in here-  _Pavot_."

Duo flipped to a seemingly random page and pushed the book forward. Heero eyed it, seeing the scrawling cursive writing there that indeed held the word several times just on one page. There were other words written as well- or names rather, lists of them. He looked up. "What makes that any different than the other things written here?"

A pointer finger raised in the air. "Ah, wonderful question," Duo said. "The word,  _Pavot_ , it's capitalized- obviously. A name- definitely. But look-" his finger rested against the open page "-it's used as a heading of sorts. See how it's underlined? Not just an ordinary name then."

Heero frowned. "Not a person. An establishment?"

Duo tapped at the end of his nose and nodded. " _Pavot_  is a flower- in english it means 'poppy,'" he explained. "Along  _Rue d'Aerschot_  there are a lot of places with odd names, no signs out front, all that sort of stuff if you catch my drift."

"Emir seemed to be a regular customer," Heero said, eyes scanning the page of names, some male and some female.

"Right and even if Emir wasn't our guy- he knew who was. If that were me I'd have hired someone I know, someone in the community. And where would I meet someone like that? A place I do frequent business at, right?"

It seemed like they were grasping at straws here, but Duo had a point. And it was the closest thing they had to a lead other than the prostitute turned messenger that was probably already long gone by now. "So our next course of action would be to investigate the business."

Duo snorted. "Business- what a quaint way to put it. But really, I think we should do some sleuthing- of course we'd need to  _consult_  with 'Fei first. Now that he's, what, like my  _handler_  or some shit?"

"Preventer would be able to get a search warrant," Heero answered, nodding along as a plan started to formulate.

He watched as Duo's brows furrowed and his lips quivered like he might start laughing. "Yeah, something like that." Heero was going to question, but then the man was gazing at him again, eyes intent and wide. "Can I ask you something?"

Taken aback by the abrupt divert of conversation, slowly and cautiously Heero agreed. "What?"

"Why'd you start drinking?" The words spilled off Duo's tongue like they'd been resting on the precipice for days. "I mean- not judging or anything, I've been there too, trust me buddy. But you just never struck me as the kinda guy to go down that particular road."

Heero felt his mouth run dry; that hadn't exactly been the question he'd been expecting. He breathed in deeply, remembering all the times he'd had to explain this very same thing to his all-too-adamantly-concerned friends. "Logically-"

"I'll stop you right there." Duo held up a firm palm. "Cut the bullshit." Funny, he'd never gotten that reaction before. "What's the  _real_  reason?"

Staring at him, Heero could feel his brows furrowing deeply. He studied Duo for a long moment, trying desperately to understand, to see past the curiosity there to what actually lay beneath it. Finally, he surrendered. "It was- a release." He found his eyes drifting to clenched fists in his lap. He was not usually one to feel embarrassed. This was turning out to be an entirely confusing topic of conversation. "Why do you care so much?"

"Look Heero, I just don't want to watch you waste away because of one shitty bump in the road. That's not like you." Duo sighed, lifting his plate to dump it in the sink, turning his back on his companion. "You said yourself that you didn't love her. So why are you so hell bent on killing yourself over it?"

Heero swallowed hard, fighting back the quiver that electrified his flesh. How was it, that after all this time, Duo seemed to know him better than he even knew himself? It was both an infuriating and terrifying thought- because in the end he was right, only it wasn't  _her_  he was killing himself over. And that was the most unsettling thought of all.


	9. Twisted Lust & Low Slung Leather

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _"I can't follow without a companion." He hesitated for a moment too long. "He's done it on purpose."_

"Absolutely not. It's out of the question. The answer is a definitive _no_."

Duo was staring at Wufei with that little light in his eyes that Heero knew meant either something very dangerous or something very laughable was about to take place next.

"I think the idea of walking into a sex club makes you a little hot and bothered, 'Fei," Duo purred. Well at least it wasn't something very dangerous. "I think maybe you're not as much of a prude as you let on."

Wufei's carmel toned skin blanched and then just as abruptly flamed a warm shade of crimson. "Maxwell, would you shut up! It is out of the question because impersonating a prostitute is simply not something a consultant- you or otherwise- is authorized to do."

"Authorized?" Duo snorted a laugh. "You know, I came to you with this because you said you could help. But if you ain't gonna _authorize_ it then by all means drop the case and I'll figure things out myself."

Heero stepped forward then, tentatively. "I think what Chang is trying to say-"

"What I'm _trying_ to say is that it is an utterly stupid idea! What happens if you get caught- or worse killed like those other victims?"

"Huh, funny. Half of that sounds like you're a condescending asshole and the other half sounds like you might actually care about my safety." Casually Duo flipped him a middle finger and then strode past the Preventer agent and into the man's own kitchen where he proceeded to scavenge for a mug.

Wufei had to visibly restrain himself, making quick eye contact with Heero before following to continue the impossible conversation. "What is your plan once you're there anyways, Maxwell?"

Duo fussed with a warming kettle on the stovetop, pouring the hot liquid into a cup already laden with a bag of tea. "Talk to people, Wufei. _Socialize_ \- something you would know little about." He turned with that feral smirk that had Heero biting his tongue. "If I drop Emir's name enough maybe something interesting will come up."

"Going into a brothel and dropping a dead man's name around might not be your best option." Wufei took the necessary strides to pull his kettle off the stovetop, then turned to fit Duo with a dark scowl.

Duo, for his part, gave a little shrug and then vacated the small kitchen to find a seat at Wufei's square dining table. "Maybe- but if I've got eyes on the outside and someone on the inside with me, the plan might just stand a chance."

"Someone on the inside? You're not suggesting-"

"Don't flip the fuck out," Duo assured him. "Not _you_ \- I happen to know someone else who's pretty adept at undercover work."

Now it was Heero's turn to scowl. "Trowa has already done enough for you, Duo. You can't possibly think he'll agree to another scheme like this again."

Duo raised brows in his direction. "Yes, actually, I do."

Heero's teeth gnashed. It had been surprisingly easy to convince Trowa the last time, surely it would not be so simple again. Those ominous words echoed back into his mind again, making his stomach clench. _Let's just say Quat owed me one._ Could that possibly have something to do with Trowa's bizarre willingness? He had mentioned cashing in favors- _plural_.

But Heero didn't have much time to mull the thought over as Duo was rambling on again. "Look, I'm not gonna force any of you to help me. At this point I'd understand if you don't really want your star hitched to my wagon. But this is important to me and it seems like I'm in pretty deep already. This is a lead and I'm taking it- with or without backup."

The gravity of his words took a few seconds to hit home with the other two men, but then Wufei was growling out, "That would surely be suicide."

Heero watched Duo's shoulders lift dramatically before falling down against the back of his chair. "Que sera sera."

Without another thought he was stalking towards the overtly blasé man, grabbing ahold of his arm and bodily hauling him out of his seat and towards the studio's small patio. "A moment?" he spat out, catching Wufei's approving eye before thrusting Duo through the small sliding door and closing it with a forceful slam.

Duo stared at him, first with visible shock, then with something akin to frustration. He brushed at his arm, though Heero knew he'd not been the least bit injured. "What the fuck, Yuy?"

Heero laced arms over his chest, the mid-morning air cool against his exposed skin. "Why are you doing this?"

There came a genuine look of confusion from the man standing across from him. "Doing what?"

"Earlier you asked me why I was killing myself over-" Heero had to swallow hard to keep his composure. "-over _her_. So now I'm asking you the same. Why are you killing yourself over this meaningless case?"

Duo's eyes grew wider, as did his smirk. "Meaningless? Geeze, that's cold. And to think I thought you'd mellowed with age."

Heero growled under his breath and approached the man, earning him a wary backwards step before Duo decided to hold his ground. He grabbed ahold of him by the shoulders, restraining the urge to shake him until his teeth rattled. "You think I don't get it? Do you think I'm that ignorant? Why did you come back to earth?"

That clearly hadn't been the question Duo had been expecting. His cheeks hollowed and his eyes struggled against Heero's harshened features. "I-I..."

Heero let him scramble for words until he couldn't take it anymore. He pushed Duo back against the patio railing and distanced himself physically. "You quit Preventer. You came here to Brussels. You came back because of _me_."

Duo just stood there, slack jawed and utterly out of character, like the wind had been knocked out of him and he couldn't get his mind to function properly. "No..."

"No?" Heero scoffed. "That's not what everyone around here keeps telling me. Why would you do that? How could you be so _stupid?_ "

That finally managed to snap Duo back to reality, a slow burn of emotion riddling his pallid features. His jaw clenched with an audible snap of teeth. "That's so like you, Heero. How could _I_ be so stupid? Right, because I'm the only _idiot_ around here, is that it?"

Heero just glared, keeping his mouth shut tight, listening. Duo took a step forward, finger outstretched to point towards his chest viciously. "You never get it, do you? _Fuck_ , she seriously messed you up in the head. They _all_ did! You really think all I ever wanted from you was- was- _shit_ , I can't even believe I'm having this conversation right now. _You're_ the one that fucking kissed _me_."

_All I ever wanted from you?_ Heero's features melted a fraction. "I already explained about that-"

"Yeah, sure." Duo glowered. "Perverse, inappropriate, presumptuous. I wonder what Tro or Quat or 'Fei- or even the fucking Queen would have to say about that?"

Heero frowned. "I don't understand-"

"Of course you don't. You never have, have you?"

He wasn't sure. Was Duo bringing about mistakes made in the past? Mistakes made when they were much younger, much more naive- when he hadn't a clue how things worked other than mechs and guns and war. "This case- there's something you're not telling me."

Duo inclined his head to stare at his boots, shadows encasing his features. "Shit, Heero. Those messages were directed at _me_. Those bodies- I have to be the one to do this. I can't let them get to _anyone_ else."

Heero felt an immense and overwhelming urge to reach out and fold the man in his arms, to hold him and to protect him from whatever it was that seemed to be attacking him. But he didn't. "I don't understand. Why is this happening?"

Indigo eyes flicked up to meet his own, something hollow about their intensity. "That's what I intend to find out."

* * *

After their conversation on the patio Heero quickly found that he didn't have much grounds to tell Duo what to do or what not to do. That irritated him to no end, but also gave him a sense of duty. If he couldn't control Duo, at least he could be an effective party to the investigation- he could protect him by doing as he was asked in the first place. He would help.

"Someone pulled him into this case- grabbed his attention." Wufei sat next to him in their unmarked vehicle, staring down at an open file that had already been dutifully memorized. "But they had to have been spurred by something. What possible motivation could they have?"

Heero kept his eyes glued to the monitor on a Preventer issue laptop, the one showing security cameras he'd managed to hack into, the one detailing a fairly wide angle of the interior of the building in which Duo had entered exactly sixty-two minutes ago. "What motivations do you see often in the field- money, power, revenge."

"You think someone's out for him- what, in revenge from the war? It's been years, we've wiped those slates clean. Few would be able to find us even if they tried," was Wufei's predictable response.

Heero just shrugged. "Out of all of us- save for maybe Quatre- Duo is the most recognizable. Remember the wanted posters?"

He saw Wufei's grimace from his peripheral vision. "Unfortunately. But why now, after all this time? He's not even with Preventer anymore-"

"I have a hard time thinking it has anything to do with him being a Gundam pilot or Preventer," Heero answered gruffly. "His origins on L2 would fit more precisely with this case. But, even that doesn't seem quite right."

Wufei took a thoughtful sip from his thermos. "Intuition?" he wondered softly. "That's rather more Winner's element."

The air around them was almost as if things had never changed, almost as if Heero were still a member of the team, as if they were still partners, unbreakable. "I'm not sure," he said, honestly.

The two men didn't speak then for a long while, eyes gazing over paperwork, interviews, photographs, and the security feed that Heero couldn't quite feel settled about. The club they sat across the street from was anything but elegant from the outside; cracking stucco facade, rod iron bars over top-floor windows that hovered just underneath a crumbling tiled roof. The door was hidden in the shadows of the adjacent alleyway, thick and metallic, containing a small window that could only be opened from the inside.

The scene was like something out of an old-fashioned pre-colony tale of gangsters and speakeasies- at least that's what Wufei had postulated. Heero had been busy trying hard not to think about just how Duo had come across the appropriate length of words, the ones his supple mouth had whispered into the little window that had gained he and Trowa access to _Pavot_.

But now, scanning the security feed, he could see in detail that this particular club was anything but a rundown, disease ridden, brothel like he'd been expecting. From what he could see the interior was impressive to say the least. Walls covered in velvet paper scrawled with gold and burgundy damask, a cherry-wood laden bar, fully stocked with only top-shelf liqueurs and spirits, chandeliers of crystal shadowing lacy patterns across lush carpeted floors, leather couches, brocade chaises, a heavy mist of smoke hanging visibly in the air, filtering up from rich cigars and jade-carved opium pipes.

But what impressed upon him most were the people that scattered themselves throughout the luxurious expanse. The older patrons harbored expensive silk dress shirts, tasteful neckties ties, tailored suits, velveteen smoking jackets, the occasional sequined evening gown. But skintight and sheer was the optimum choice in clothing among most of the younger bodies, many dressed in delicate silk corsets- men as well as women- leather undergarments, lavish jewelry, rouge, lipstick, lace bodices, patent leggings, mesh tanks, tasseled bras, and occasionally nothing at all.

He'd thought the clothing that Duo had chosen had been far too risqué and impractical, but now he understood the necessity behind his costume. A black, silk shirt- two-sizes too small- left hanging open to reveal a lean, milky chest and soft abdomen. Tight leathers slung low on sharp hips, somewhat akin to Trowa's own, though these were riddled with slits and tears, the fabric hiding only what was necessary. His hair had been braided loosely, a gold ribbon tying off the end to match the charms, bangles, and rings lining his wrists and fingers. A thin line of coal rimmed his eyes, the indigo glowing vibrant from under naturally thick lashes. His black combat boots were the only foreseeably 'normal' thing about the entire ensemble.

It had been enough to make Heero visibly quiver.

The only reasonably good thing that had happened so far that night had involved the man that shadowed behind Duo as they'd entered the club together. It had taken considerable coaxing to get Trowa to agree this time, the response Heero had expected of him the first time around, a response he could not stop himself with agreeing with.

Against Heero's advisement, it had taken the begged intervention of Wufei to convince him, as odd as that interaction had been. But Chang, for reasons still unknown, had come at it from an agent's perspective, talking logically about the case as if it were just another criminal to be run up out of the muck. Heero was beginning to fear that his friends had all somehow succumbed to whatever strange spell Duo Maxwell had had him under so many years before.

And so for now, they watched. For the first hour it had been less than entertaining and not at all fruitful when it came to their investigation. Trowa, for his part, sat at the bar, clad in a charcoal Armani that he seemed all-too comfortable in, and sipping bourbon from a heavy-bottomed glass. Duo clung next to him for a while as he surveyed the main room, posture casual and inviting, his fingers occasionally tickling across Trowa's neck or those familiar black-framed vid-glasses in a way that made Heero's muscles involuntarily tense.

But it was all an act, all part of this entirely impulsive and ill-planned mission. Heero had to keep telling himself that, even as Duo's lips trailed next to Trowa's ear- presumably discussing persons and surroundings- or when a passerby ogled the braided man's tightly encased ass.

And then, at minute seventy-three, things began to change. Through the warm, red glow that seemed to encompass the entire establishment, Heero watched as Duo's body slid from the safe proximity of Trowa and glided, careless and confident, from the bar and towards a corner scattered with nests of chenille armchairs. His sights appeared to be set on someone Heero did not at first recognize, an older boxy looking blond with a sharply sculpted goatee and skin almost as pale as Duo's own.

Before Heero had the chance, Wufei was already tapping a finger to his ear. "Trowa?"

Through both of their earpieces came the soft voice of their comrade. "Erik Kruse," he explained. "The name came up in the 'little black book.' He said you'd know what that means."

Heero watched Wufei's frown manifest quickly, his eyes darting questioningly to his ex-partner. Instead of acknowledging the confusion, Heero ignored it entirely. "Roger," he responded for both of them. "Eyes up."

"Always," came the grunted reply.

"That name rings familiar," he said, turning to Wufei with seriousness in his tone. Now was not the time for a quarrel.

Wufei, probably against his internal judgement, let his argumentative jaw slacken. "He used to run private security for Representative Lindsey, L2."

Right, now Heero remembered the man, having seen and read about him in the news little over a year ago before he'd been extradited to earth and put under a meager six-month house arrest for attempting to 'sell secrets,' or at least that's how the media had spun it.

"He wouldn't know Duo?" he asked, not particularly to Wufei, but more generally to the thick air surrounding them. He knew it wasn't likely, the L2 sector was an expansive cluster, but still it was not impossible if he'd run security when Duo was still an agent.

"Mmm." Wufei's lips pursed. "I wouldn't think Maxwell so stupid as to try and seduce him if he did."

Heero wasn't so sure, but he was inclined to agree with him if only for the sake of clearing his mind of the negative consequences Duo could face in such an act as this; extradited criminal or not, Kruse had at least a hundred pounds on Duo's slight frame and a greasy smile that caused ripples to run beneath Heero's skin.

But it was the way that Duo gazed at the man that had Heero's stomach turning to ice. Predatory was the best word for it, like he was sizing up his next victim- which in reality was not out of the realm of possibility.

He watched as Duo's arm came to rest against the back of the man's chair, his hip cocking to hit against Kruse's shoulder. There were words exchanged, but without audio and at the way Duo had angled himself, it was impossible to know what had been said.

It was Trowa's voice, soft and hollow, that broke Heero away from his intense vision on the security feed as the large man rose from his seated position, eyes drinking in Duo's appearance hungrily.

"They're going to the back rooms," Trowa said, not sounding entirely sure of his position as he had earlier.

Heero watched as the two bodies indeed made their way towards an undisclosed sector of the club, Kruse trailing behind Duo's exaggeratedly swaying hips like an obedient dog.

"Barton?" Wufei's voice was terse coming through the earpiece.

They watched on the monitor as Trowa's vision swept across the room. "I can't follow without a companion." He hesitated for a moment too long. "He's done it on purpose," he explained then, almost knowingly.

Heero growled, but Wufei was restraining him with a sharp hand wrapped around his bicep, as if he'd known the man's first instinct would be to storm into the club, gun's blazing. "No," Wufei muttered only to him. "We have to trust him."

That statement seemed entirely out-of-place coming from where it had. Since when had Wufei ever trusted Duo this implicitly in his entire existence? Heero's hands melded into fists resting atop his knees. This couldn't be happening- Duo couldn't be- not even for the sake of the case. He just couldn't-

"I've got eyes on someone I think you're going to want to see."

Trowa's voice came abruptly once more, though now it was filled with a tone of genuine emotion that it hadn't been before. With a few clicks Heero had brought up the vid-feed attached to the false glasses the man had been made to wear.

There, several paces to the left of his perch, stood a man they'd not seen in some time, not someone they'd ever suspected to be in a place such as this. Certainly not someone that would aid in their little concocted covert mission here.

Heero stared with steely eyes at the man's expensive suit, italian dress-shoes, his notable silver locks, that inscrutable scowl. It was Zechs Merquise.


	10. Haptic

Heero wanted nothing more than to snap the wrist attached like a vice around his bicep. He wanted to march into the club and drag Duo out by his braid and lock him in his apartment or send him away with Hilde for the rest of his life because then at least he might be safe from whatever self-imposed-death-wish-obsession he'd had going on since the war. He also wanted to walk up to one Zechs Merquise and give him a fist to the gut that had been long since warranted within their sorted relationship.

He did none of that.

Instead he turned towards Wufei, flexing but not pulling away and bit down. "What, are we just supposed to sit here and let him go through with it?"

The 'it' in question didn't need much more explanation. Heero watched as the man beside him contemplated the question and the very real eventualities that went along with it. But in light of his friend's rampant glare, Wufei took another path.

"Let him make contact." He spoke slow and deliberate into his earpiece, both of their eyes drifting to the monitors to wait out Trowa's response.

The order apparently hadn't been needed as the tall frame of Merquise sauntered up to the bar-top, taking the stool neighboring Trowa, as if all along that had been his mission. After a tense second they watched their comrade's hand find its way unassumingly to his earpiece, catching it on in order to relay whatever conversation was going to take place while also disabling any possible way for Wufei or Heero to speak with the man. Possibly problematic, but clearly Trowa took it as a necessary evil. It would seem his curiosity had been piqued just as much as theirs had been.

"Where is he?" were the first words out of Merquise's mouth, even as he waved off the attentive bartender, turning his body to invade Trowa's own space in a near threatening manner.

The slim man observed his potential opponent through shrouding bangs, not a single emotion on his face, his muscle's movements smooth and casual. "To whom are you referring?" he asked, voice sounding utterly dead and uncaring.

The blasé attitude might've proved to irritate someone with quite a bit less stamina, but Merquise simply met his monotone with a soft simper of his lips. "The  _companion_  you entered with, of course."

"You must be confused," Trowa countered with a light quirk of his brow. "He is not my companion. Otherwise it would be  _me_  he was busy fucking in the back rooms."

The crudity of his words made Heero's insides convulse sharply, but Wufei's harsh gaze served to calm him, if only taking the edge off enough to understand the tactic Trowa was employing at the moment.

It seemed as though the words had also reaped something within Merquise himself, the man grimacing for a second before managing to compose his features. "I see. Then, may I ask, who is he busy fucking?"

"I don't see how that's any of your business, Zechs," Trowa replied evenly.

The man barely held back an audible growl. "I think it is very much my business. He is here on Earth traipsing about with Relena's fiancé-"

" _Ex_ -fiancé. If I am correct in remembering that the Vice Foreign Minister broke off that engagement weeks ago." Trowa's eyes were narrowed, intense, even through the unfocussed monitors.

Heero felt something surge through his veins; anger he thought at first, but then quickly found it to be a more chilling feeling-  _guilt_. He turned to watch Wufei's eyes, glued to the monitors as if he'd not expected such a pointed response from their companion. But there, in the dark depths of his gaze, was a faint light of appreciation. However, this also brought about another question entirely: why on Earth had Zechs Merquise come looking for Duo?

It seemed that the thought would have to wait as a scuffling sound of metal on metal alerted both their eyes up and across the street to find a skeleton of a body clambering down the side of a chain-link fence separating the club's back alleyway from the rest of the street. Heero knew who it was immediately, the braid not leaving much up to the imagination, but what startled him the most was how utterly unrecognizable Duo seemed in every other aspect as he bolted across the street, narrowly missing a cab as it laid on the horn.

On the screen they watched as the club's patrons became momentarily distracted by the blaring screech of the car, the distraction affording Trowa a second to fumble a finger to his earpiece. Wufei was at the ready, speaking tersely. "Get the hell out," he ordered, unsure of the exact reasoning for their apparent panic, but not leaving anything up to chance.

Duo was just getting to the car then, wrenching open the back door, lungs sounding pained with how quickly they were intaking the air around him. His eyes were smudged gray, lips swollen, bangs tousled, clothing slightly askew. He was covered in blood.

"Duo!" Heero was practically leaping into the backseat, eyes raking over the other man's body in search of a wound that would have produced such a glistening, scarlet mess.

"Not mine," Duo panted out, pushing against Heero's shoulders to lodge him back into his seat. He licked at his lips, something off about the twitchy action. "Where's Tro?"

Wufei's gaze drifted back to the monitors to find a disgruntled looking Zechs Merquise, but no green-eyed man reaming him with the driest of sarcasm. Instead another body was tumbling into the backseat opposite Duo. They stared for a moment at Trowa, who stared back entirely unquestioning, before Wufei gunned the vehicle forward, trying his damnedest not to make too much of a spectacle of their retreat than they already had.

* * *

They'd been driving for about ten minutes, taking an entirely out-of-the-way route back to Wufei's apartment, before Duo offered up some semblance of explanation for his harried and gruesome looking appearance.

"The smarmy asshole just got a bit too friendly, if you catch my drift," Duo offered, rubbing at his nose.

Wufei's eyes met his through the rearview, appraising his half-naked chest. "I can't imagine how you're at all surprised by that."

Heero chose a different tactic, turning to fix him with a glare straight from their days in the war. "And your solution was to  _stab_  him?"

Duo watched the other man's incredulity carefully before giving a sheepish shrug. Suddenly his weapon of choice was flipping between his fingertips, still marred with Kruse's blood, swishing in the air before him presumably in the same manner he'd used to slice the man he'd taken to the back rooms with him. "Can't help it if my fight or flight's a bit skewed, eh?"

Trowa was eyeing the knife with soft appreciation. "Dead?" he wondered.

"No." Duo's head shook. "Don't think so. Prolly just his pride maybe."

Wufei actually snorted at that, but Heero's teeth were grinding. "Did you at least succeed in your objective?"

He shrugged again, reaching into the pocket of his leathers to pull out a small white card and handed it forward. "He knew Emir- 'course who doesn't around here. That's all he had on his person 'sides identification. The number look familiar to you at all?"

Heero studied the small card, flipping it over to find a telephone number scrawled in blocky handwriting. He frowned. "It's a Sanc area code- I don't recognize it though."

"Eh, didn't suppose you would. Maybe we can call it, see who picks up?" Duo wondered, watching the other man through his thick lashes.

Looking back to him, Heero took in the dried blood marring his chest and clothing, his mussed hair and forced smirk. "Are you okay?" he asked, deep and calm and trying not to let on just how entirely nervous and paranoid he'd been a few moments before under Wufei's watchful eye.

"You know if I knew any better I'd say you look a little freaked, 'Ro."

Apparently his acting skills had somewhat diminished over the years- which couldn't have been by much considering the limitedness of his skills in the first place. Heero sighed and morphed his lips into a dark frown. "This case is a-  _mess_." For lack of a better word. "I want some concrete answers."

"Wishful thinking," Duo threw back, eyes flicking between the two men in the front seats. "You pick that 'concrete' shit up from, 'Fei?"

That got the Chinese man's attention rather pointedly, his gaze smoldering the rearview. "Yuy's correct- it seems we are currently hanging by the skin of our teeth. I wouldn't be surprised if Une revokes your consultation rights tomorrow when we show up empty handed with nothing more than a useless telephone number and an attempted-murder weapon."

"Hey now!  _Self defense_ ," Duo spat back, exaggerating the words to the point where they seemed entirely too many syllables. "And besides, who says I'm going in for some 'debriefing' tomorrow- this was nothin', this was just reconnaissance."

"I'm afraid we may have to tell him." The voice came from beside Duo, slick crawling from the shadows as Trowa's eyes found Heero's own in a locked and powerful gaze.

Heero nodded once, infinitesimal, while Duo's brows curved inwards and his braid flicked with the movement of his neck swiveling between them. "Tell me  _what_?"

Opening his mouth, Heero was ready, but Trowa beat him to the punch. "Zechs Merquise is looking for you."

There was a pause, heavy and filled with only the sound of four consecutive sets of breathing and the cars humming engine as they drove on. Heero watched carefully the reaction the name had on Duo, taking in the subtlety of lashes dipping, lips twitching, fingers flinching. To anyone else the actions might have gone unnoticed, but they registered something within Heero, something he couldn't quite yet understand, but knew he'd felt sometime before.

And then the mask was back, Duo's smirk settling in thick. "Zechs? As in the man of a thousand names- Milliardo Peacecraft, Lightning Count, Agent Wind-  _that_  Zechs?"

"Agent Wind was a short lived identity," came the snorted response from up front.

Ignoring that, Heero just nodded once. It had obviously been a rhetorical question. "Do you have any idea why, Duo?"

"Why?" Duo's eyes glazed in genuine confusion for a few seconds. "Why Zechs Merquise might be askin' around for me? No, unless he's finally come 'round to the old Maxwell charms." The wink he added with that did nothing to settle Heero's already sour stomach.

"He mentioned something about your 'traipsing about with Relena's ex-fiance,'" Trowa supplied blandly.

Duo made a show of scratching at his chin in contemplation. "Hm. Dunno. Guess maybe he's just jealous."

They were pulling up to Wufei's building now as Heero rounded on the braided man with a look of utter incredulity. " _Jealous_?"

"Well, shit, I don't know!" Duo shot back, almost bizarrely flustered.

Wufei turned on the car and maneuvered in his seat to meet the other man's widened eyes. "It seems to me that perhaps the only party in this situation with room for an emotion such as jealousy would be Relena herself."

That managed to send a furious blush down both Heero and Duo's set jaws. But before any sort of retort could be made Trowa and Wufei were exiting the vehicle, effectively pausing the conversation and leaving the other two men to fluster under one another's scrutiny before the drying blood smattered against Duo's body once again came back into focus and they hurried, intensely silent, after their companions.

* * *

It hadn't taken much convincing on Duo's part to send both Trowa and Wufei off on an errand in search of required ibuprofen and late-night take-out, one of which was a very transparent stretch-of-the-truth that Heero let slide without comment.

It also- surprisingly enough- hadn't taken much convincing on Heero's part to let him inspect the wounds Duo had complained rather theatrically about aching. But it soon seemed he might regret that little triumph as now, suddenly, he was standing in Wufei's corner-study staring at an entirely stark and unapologetically  _naked_  Duo Maxwell.

He swallowed, keeping his eyes level with the forced smirk on the other man's lips. Blood still clung to his skin, though they'd managed to wipe away most of it, what was left only marring clothing that would likely be incinerated sometime before tomorrow. Otherwise the man was still uncannily the same as what he could glean from the memories that kept him up at night. Hardened muscle, thin yet powerful structure, some room for mistaking him as something other than the killer he used to be- probably still was; but that was his angle, wasn't it? Always unpredictable.

Heero swallowed once more. "What happened, Duo?"

There were bruises he could see, already coloring a faint shade of puce, lining his thin wrist and angular hipbone. Accompanying them were a few reddened marks of sharp nails running down his side- the puzzle of just how Duo had jumped from sexual being to impulsive assassin becoming much more clear now. But there was something oddly familiar about the marks as they began to twist an ugly, writhing feeling within Heero's gut. No, it didn't make any sense; how was it that  _he_  was the one feeling any form of guilt right now?

"I just- overreacted is all." That hadn't been what Heero was referring to and Duo knew it, giving him a sharp glance through tangled bangs. "Brought up a few too many bad memories, y'know?"

He might've known, really Heero wasn't so sure. But that body, those bruises- suddenly something was stirring within him and to his great distaste it wasn't exactly guilt anymore.

"Tell me," he requested, voice hoarser than he would've liked.

Duo moved, posture languid and utterly uncaring that he was entirely naked in front of his companion- who was, incidentally, entirely clothed and feeling somewhat stifled with each approaching step.

There was a hand against Heero's hip and one latched to his wrist, mimicking the bruises swelling against Duo's milky skin. He leaned in and Heero stiffened on reflex. "Why don't I  _show_  you?"

It wasn't the perverse words, not the underlying nonchalance, nor even the lips coming to press against his collar bone. In the end it was the way his skin began to tingle almost painfully with the touch- a  _haptic_ memory. The stimulus was there, in the form of Duo's tongue swirling beneath the shell of his ear, and the recollection of the acquired data was flooding back to Heero faster than he could move his arms to encase the new force rubbing against every possible plane of his body.

All sense of the here and now seemed to flood away as an ingrained memory of the past began to pulse repeatedly in the dark recesses of Heero's mind. He felt, for all intents and purposes, like he was fifteen again- an entirely dangerous time in his life without having been a hormonal teenage terrorist. But when Duo's sharp teeth found the sensitive string of taught muscles between his neck and shoulder it was- suddenly and resoundingly- all over.

Heero's hips shot forward on impulse, grinding into Duo's own and eliciting a vibrating moan from within the other man's throat, deep and warm against his skin. Lips found his, crushing at first before softening, a tongue playing against wet flesh and forcing his arousal to successfully come to fruition. It had been a long awaited and long overdue sensation, to have Duo Maxwell's mouth on his body for the sole purpose of powerful, struggling, glorious  _sex_.

In his mind's eye, for a brief second, Heero watched himself with a wide gaze and utter incredulity. How had this escalated so quickly, without so much as a real and true provocation? Nothing more than a little implication and the fact that Duo's skin was rapidly turning shades of bloodied violet he hadn't seen since the war. But his body was moving faster than his thoughts could collect to warn him against the impending want. From seasoned practice he understood these kisses, their hurried frenzy, and yet still there was something entirely confusing about the whole thing- something not right.

Heero's breath sharpened as Duo dug needy fingers down his shoulder blades. Well if you can't beat 'em-

Muscles straining forward, Heero's body pushed, landing Duo's back against the flat's wall with a thud that inevitably left a few of Wufei's scattered scrolls and frames askew. No, they could  _not_ do this here, Heero's mind was bellowing from somewhere above him. He dutifully ignored it, accepting the idea with the smallest of graces- they wouldn't use the bed. No, that would be quite an imprudent invasion to say the least.

Duo was breathing heavy against his neck, hands pulling at his shirt with rapid impatience towards the fabric still daring to cover the man before him. Heero allowed the garment to be pulled from his body with virile ease, pushing their bare skin together again with crushing force. His lips nipped at Duo's before trailing down that lean chest to suck at the taught skin over his sternum, fingers dancing over hardened nipples before latching onto the dips of the man's sharp hipbones. He knew this body well- so well that he could hit all the right spots on the first try.

"Heero-" Duo's voice ripped from his lungs, a gasp of concern that went almost unnoticed by the man now kneeling before him. He looked up through dark bangs, but the eyes he met were lust hazed, hiding most of the shock of their current situation behind that indigo glaze.

His tongue flicked over the bruise on Duo's hip, the skin warm and tasting of salt. The man above him gave a soft whimper, but the fingers threading in Heero's hair, tugging with the slightest bit of urgency, overrode any of his unease that this was  _not_  what Duo wanted- what they  _both_  wanted- in this moment.

The etherial version of Duo he'd witnessed earlier in that club invaded his mind, causing Heero's hardness to twitch involuntarily against his suddenly confining slacks as he laved at the tender abrasion once more before trailing feather kisses down a quivering thigh and back up to the aching erection that had not exactly gone unnoticed during their scene thus far.

The rational crevice of his brain thought for a moment of the repercussions they might face if their other two companions arrived back earlier than expected, but as he brought lips to encompass the cock before him, earning an appreciative gasp from overhead, Heero banished the thought to focus entirely on the pleasure of the present moment.

This was, far and wide, not a new experience for him, but it had been a few years- to say the least. Still the sounds of encouragement echoing above him as he allowed his voice to reverberate at the back of his throat, taking what he wanted with little hesitation- it was almost as if this had been their normal, always.

Heero's tongue curled against the underside of Duo's shaft, a shiver moving rapidly through the thighs that were clasped near painfully under superhuman fingers. Duo thrust forward, but Heero held him back, held him just at the brink, eyes gliding to see the visual confirmation of the edge he was forcefully providing. It was a powerful feeling, one he'd not realized he'd missed so much.

With a wet pop he released, Heero's soft breath warm against the now glistening hardness. He almost smiled, once, before Duo's hands were grasping first at the wall behind him almost lost, and then towards Heero demanding his attention a little helplessly.

The idea occurred to him that perhaps this activity did not bode a nice and happy ending- in fact, they probably shouldn't be doing any of the things that were transpiring and were about to transpire, the images only causing his cock to twitch rather pointedly. But the little monster hiding in the recesses of his mind, that uncaring and foolish emotion he tried so hard to contain-  _lust_ \- was currently biting against any of the logical cells left in his body. And Heero, despite the warning voices of what strangely enough sounded like some very familiar comrades, ignored it all and pulled his body upwards to slam Duo's back to the wall again earning him a hazy glare of approval.

The long, silken braid somehow found its way into his fingers, Duo's own mouth fitted against his, curving hesitantly as if enjoying a private joke. After a few seconds, and a playful swipe of a curious tongue, the smirk deepened and traveled against the edge of his jaw.

"Is this perverse?" The tongue trailed down Heero's chest then, teasing along with those words. "Inappropriate?" The wetness twirled across his sternum, nicking a nipple. "Presumptuous?" Duo laid butterfly kisses, one after another, ghosting down his side until-

When lips came to rest against a patch of thin, white scar tissue Heero's body drew backwards, flinching in near agony. His eyes flashed open. He'd  _never_  felt that sort of pain before. Not since- not since the initial injury itself.

The monster screaming at his body to continue onwards was momentarily restrained by the burn of a memory long since passed, but seemingly not quite forgotten. Heero stared at a half crouching Duo through dark bangs, assessing the man clinically. There did not appear to be any initial danger, at least not on the surface. But as his vision dug deeper, as if to peer straight through the man, he nearly caught a glimpse of the being beneath. Duo at first looked confused, near hurt by the sudden change in emotion, but that smile never left his lips, only grew into something scarily recognizable-  _Shinigami_.

And then, just as quickly as it had appeared, it was gone again. There was the prickly urge to shutter within Heero's muscles, but he held himself back, breathing once.

Duo was inherently dangerous. That much was entirely clear to all. Perhaps, despite everything, that was why Heero couldn't stop himself from drawing closer with every breath.

In a swift and practiced move he'd manage to regain control of the situation again. Heero's body came forward, fingers going to Duo's arm and hip, spinning him without hesitation towards the wall. Hands came out to catch against the stark, white plaster as Duo's body was suddenly put off balance as a strong forearm pushed against the underside of his thigh, lifting and surging forwards, bringing the slighter man nearly to the tips of his toes.

Pinned as he was, off-kilter, hands grasping for purchase, head turned rather harshly, left leg straining to keep balance, Duo could do little to bring about memories purposefully abandoned. Heero felt the pain beneath his ribcage subside and his resolve began anew. He was in control- and based on the shuddering gasp of a whine coming from the man he was holding- he was playing this in just the correct manner.

Duo shifted slightly, pushing his ass backwards right into the straining pants Heero was busy unbuttoning with his one available hand. "Leathers," he spat out, shortly. "Right pocket."

It was enough of an order for Heero, who let his own garments fall to the floor as he leaned to reach for the bloodied leather pants hanging sadly over Wufei's desk chair. Indeed he found exactly what he'd been thinking of seconds before Duo had said a word. Of course, the carrying of these particular items might have alerted him in any other circumstance, but seeing as how Duo had posed as some type of 'companion' not more than an hour beforehand, this was all beginning to seem oddly appropriate.

Fighting past the nagging shock of the moment still resting somewhere behind Heero's tensed shoulders, he went about the work of carefully and methodically running teasing fingers over hardened muscle, tracing the lower edges of that startling tattoo, down towards a sensitive crevice until finally dipping to find the ring he'd not felt beneath his touch in far too long.

There was a spasm or two, the angle just slightly less than awkward for Duo as he relaxed forward, allowing the wall to take the brunt of his weight as the first digit, knuckle deep, made it's way in, slicked and cool to his heated, sensitive skin.

After that neither man spoke more than to affirm and rasp out ragged praises under sultry breath. This was natural, not a timid first time, not an angry, adrenaline fueled fuck, not making love. Not anything other than what it was. Just  _natural_.

Once muscles had been prepared and a condom rolled on with ease, the sense of where they were, in time and space and body, was wiped away. Heero thrust upwards, still holding Duo's precarious position, palm flattened against the wall matching his partner's own. Certainly he was still under control, but neither were so ignorant to believe that Duo couldn't turn those circumstances around, with little effort, if he'd truly wanted to. But he didn't.

It was an intense heat, tightness, something overwhelming and welcomed that Heero had almost forgotten to be the one true act that could actually wrack his focus. At the thought his body twitched, but he held back the impulse to stop, to clear his mind back to the organized, logical steel case that it was- if for only this moment in time. This was real, this was important. Duo growled deep and low in his throat; Heero had stopped moving, holding the other man against the wall without mercy.

After another fifty-four seconds- Heero had begun to keep time in his mind on instinct- Duo managed to strike a balance, bringing about a free hand to wrap his own straining hardness, left aching from the earlier ministrations.

It did not last much longer than that- though the unspoken words had been undoubtably that it wouldn't. It had been years- at least for Heero- and he knew quite readily just the right angle and pressure to find that peak in a partner he'd once known almost better than himself.

For a brief few strokes his scar brushed against the damp skin of Duo's back, flashing a white light of something Heero could not comprehend before his eyelids, and then it was over. Shudders tore through his tendons, his legs weakening at the knees, his lungs burning. For an insurmountable second he was thrown head first back into the war, but as his eyes flew open to stare at the blood-flecked braid caught between their still connected bodies now he knew immediately the true act he'd just committed.

And Heero realized helplessly, as the other man's head turned to nuzzle lips against his quivering jaw, that he'd just fallen backwards into something he'd never thought he'd be a party to again. And the only person there to catch him now was Duo.


	11. You Didn't Know I Planned It Out

He'd never felt an illness like this before in his entire existence.

The shower was running behind him, filling the small bathroom up with renewed steam and causing the perspiration congregating upon his brow to increase exponentially. Heero was certain he could still smell that coppery waft of a stranger's blood as the remnants left behind from Duo's previous rinse swirled down the drain in terrifyingly indifferent innocence.

How was it that  _this_  of all things was going to be the end of him?

During the war he'd slapped bones back into place without so much as a mild wince and now here he sat, eyes reddened and throat raw, the residual waves of pleasure his body was being forced to ride out still lingering in his groin's subconscious.

What a horrible mistake he'd made. What an awful decision. What a glorious pitfall. Because it had been glorious, in the moment, but now as he dealt with these unfamiliar repercussions he wasn't so sure he could go on from here. There was a window near the cordoned off 'bedroom' of Wufei's compact studio; if he were lucky he'd find a viable fire-escape there. If he weren't so lucky he could probably jump out and survive just as well- they were only on the third floor after all.

A soft knock on the door interrupted his spiraling thoughts. In a haze, Heero stood, thrusting hands towards the shower's spray to swipe at his face and neck. A minute later he'd exited the small washroom, clothed and putting on the appearance of utter composure- or at least his own brand of what he thought composure should look like.

However, he was not met with Duo's face- smiling, scowling, or otherwise- but instead with the surprisingly neutral expression of Quatre Winner.

"Heero, you look-" Quatre's mouth seemed to stop working mid-sentence, his lower lip quavering almost infinitesimally. He swallowed once and then tried again, his vision drifting over the dampened hair hanging against Heero's skin and then back to his eyes in one fluid motion. "Are you alright?"

"Fine," he answered, probably rather more curt than he should have. Quatre was just being empathetic after all, but even after all these years that was still not something Heero had grown accustomed to yet.

Immediately Quatre shook his head as if trying to backpedal the concern and brush it off. Heero almost felt bad about the whole thing until the lilting sound of Duo's voice made it's way down the narrow hall and the entirety of his current problem was brought back abruptly, slicing at him like a cauterizing blade.

Quatre followed him, somewhat at a loss, back into the studio's main living space, carefully eyeing the braided man now perched at Wufei's desk before allowing his focus to adjust back on Heero- who in turn was watching the entire splay of emotions on Quatre's face play out in near technicolor. This was odd, but not unheard of, and Heero could practically feel the oncoming onslaught of questions and the infamous lecture he was sure to face in a matter of seconds. Damn empath.

But before Quatre could drag him into the corner for a scolding or some sort of calming verbiage, a voice- far from Duo's, but not so far from familiar- came through the crackling speakers of the desktop communicator their companion was apparently borrowing, activation codes probably hacked in seconds- which would be to Wufei's great displeasure, of course.

"Maxwell- it's late, can't this wait till morning?" Walter Lannon spoke with a thick tongue, large hands swiping at slivered eyes. Evidently he'd just been rudely awakened.

Duo spoke almost hushed, though he was quite aware of Heero and Quatre's presence looming behind him. "Walt, you alone? I've gotta a bit of a situation, but it's gotta stay on the D.L., if you know what I mean."

Heero nearly choked on the words as they flew out of his mouth. "Duo- what are you-"

But a surprisingly strong set of fingers lacing against his bicep and pulling him towards the flat's patio door cut him off mid chastisement. Quatre was grumbling something unintelligible under his breath, waving off a curious looking Duo as he tried his best to drag Heero out onto the small deck, forcing a border of thick, glass privacy between the two soon-to-be conversations.

"Winner-" Heero was turning on the blond man with a well fueled glare of annoyance, but amazingly enough Quatre beat him to the punch.

"I know for a fact that I do not understand everything that is going on here- and no, I won't be asking- but from what Trowa and Wufei have informed me, you and Duo are both in deeper than you should be on a case that shouldn't be handled by anyone other than Une herself."

Heero's tongue felt heavy in his mouth. "Une?"

"Death threats, Heero?" Quatre spat at him as if that was somehow an appropriate answer. "Have you really lost it?"

"Duo-"

"Duo's roped you into a case that he forced jurisdiction on because he happened to be connected to some of the victims. You don't find any of this a little too odd? Someone's targeting him, and now that someone is just as likely to start targeting you as well."

Taking a deep swallow of nothing, Heero stared at the shorter man with a stare of utter blankness. Of course Duo was being targeted; hadn't he yelled at the man about that particular issue already? But it had certainly gotten him nowhere good. With rough fingers he found himself pinching the bridge of his nose.

"I don't understand why he came to me," he explained under his breath. "Why he quit Preventers and moved to earth. It's not logical."

There came a soft snort of amusement. "Since when is anything that Duo does classified as 'logical?'"

Heero looked up to be met with a somewhat softer version of his friend, more familiar and less harsh. Quatre smiled at him. "You really don't get it still? Even now that you are no longer... _engaged_."

There was a pause wherein Heero realized he was supposed to have some moment of clarity. Suffice it to say that it didn't happen. Instead he frowned. "I don't see how that has anything to do with Duo. Relena ended our engagement purely based on emotional turmoil that I caused her while focussing my time too intensely within the Preventer organization."

That entirely scientific sounding explanation managed to snap Quatre's mouth shut for a few brief seconds. Heero watched his brows furrow slowly over glowing eyes- eyes that left little up to the imagination as far as sentiment went. "Heero, I hate to break it to you, but that's not the reason Relena broke it off," Quatre said, lips curling downwards. "And I think you know it too."

Heero felt an immense wave of ice turn his skin to gooseflesh. He stumbled entirely awkwardly for the appropriate words only to come up shorthanded. "What?"

"Duo." Quatre said it so matter-of-fact that for a moment Heero assumed that that was going to be all the explanation he was granted. His insides were starting to freeze over now and it had absolutely nothing to do with the cool mid-morning air surrounding them on the small patio.

In a fit of intense thought Quatre's brows furrowed and he cleared his throat, his gaze looking a bit unfocused. "He's- he's got this hold over you- always has and it seems to me he always will."

"Hold?" Heero repeated. "I don't understand."

Oh, but he did- he did understand. His lips were suddenly warmed by the memory of flesh on his own, pushing forward, devouring.

He remembered Duo's words.  _You really think all I ever wanted from you was- was-_ He could feel the weight of another man's breath against the angle of his neck.  _I don't understand- Of course you don't. You never have, have you?_

But he did, he did understand. But how could this be- all this time- why hadn't Duo ever told him before? And now- he was acting rather more like it was a game- how far can I push Heero Yuy until he breaks down for an all encompassing, rough, quick,  _fuck_? Dammit, apparently it didn't take much.

Heero's mind flicked black, then white, then an unusual shade of gray. "Why did you owe him?"

The look on Quatre's face was almost laughable. Heero wasn't sure if he was surprised by the question itself or the abruptness of the asking. "Owe who?"

A tongue flicked out to cold-chapped lips. "Duo. What could he possibly have done for you since the war?"

He'd never been met with this particular expression on Quatre Winner's face before- what was it that people said, 'the cat who ate the canary?' Heero decided quickly that perhaps he did not actually desire the answer to his left-field question, but it was abundantly clear that now it was much too late for taking things back.

For his part, Quatre managed to hold Heero's gaze with a levelness to be expected from the strategic businessman, though the quiver at the back of his throat and the way his eyes grew timid in the dim lighting of their surroundings proved to betray his truest emotions.

"I'm the one who asked him to leave."

It took a moment for Heero to hear what had just been confessed to him, like their connection was fuzzy and delayed, like they were not speaking face to face with Duo no more than three feet from them through semi-soundproof glass, like they were colonies away and Heero couldn't reach out and grab ahold of Quatre's petite and slender throat.

"Leave." The word was entirely foreign against his tongue. He had no idea how to proceed. He was at a loss- he thought for certain that he must be misunderstanding the other man's statement. He must be confused, as was common- he oftentimes allowed things to be mistranslated through his filter, or lack-thereof- surely this was one of those instances.

Quatre looked entirely guilty, but that couldn't be right, could it? The blond cleared his throat, any resolve he'd put up moments before quickly wearing against Heero's sharp and, most likely, imposingly quizzical stare. "I realize now that I was immensely wrong in that, but at the time- with Relena- with the infancy of the Earth Sphere-" He watched the other man's adam's apple bob oddly with a dry, unnecessary swallow. "-it was the right decision for the time in which it was made."

Heero's frown was beginning to grow uncomfortably deep. "Duo-  _left_  because you asked him to," he stated obtusely. "He left Earth- moved back to L2- because you told him to."

It was probably true that Heero was not exactly handling the conversation like a normal human being might. It was also probably true that he was beginning to make Quatre Winner squirm a bit. The other man was staring at him in utter uncertainty, like Heero might just spontaneously combust right then and there on Wufei's veranda.

The guilt in Quatre's voice had not faded, only amplified due to the non-questions being thrown back to him. "Heero- it was for the best-" his eyes were practically shining through the shadows. "-the best for both of you. Whatever it was that you had during the war- well, it was quite-" he swallowed unnecessarily again. "-it was  _toxic_."

The tables had turned abruptly between them. It seemed at first the interrogation had been meant for Heero, but now it was Quatre doing what appeared like some sort of groveling form of reasoning with a man not fully comprehending any of it. Odd, in that Heero wasn't trying to be confrontational here, but the defensive stance the blond was slowly adopting was beginning to prove otherwise.

"Why did you come here?" Heero hadn't thought to ask such an appropriate question until just now, somewhere between contemplating about how to approach Duo about this new intel and leaving them both behind in search of a strong drink of choice.

Quatre, for what it was worth, did not seem as surprised as he aught to have been at the sudden change of topic. "I employ some of the best attorneys in the Sphere- if it comes down to that."

Heero had the sudden urge to roll his eyes. "You trekked all the way here at three in the morning to hand out some business cards?" He did roll his eyes then and felt the utter sensation of warmth at the way he was channelling a familiar form of sarcasm that had been following him at his heels lately.

At the rare humor Quatre seemed at first startled, then he said with a frown, "If you think this is because I  _owe_  him, it's not. Get your head on straight Yuy, I didn't just come here for Duo- I came here for  _you_."

Spit-fire, there it was, something that Heero vaguely recalled from the war and even some pointedly worded editorials on one L4 Representative Winner. "I don't see how my interactions with a fellow pilot is any of your concern- or Chang and Barton's either."

Quatre's gaze had darkened considerably. Those editorials had been overly gracious it seemed. "I don't understand you- why are you letting him cloud your judgement?" he spat out, as if finally at the end of his rope. "Have you seriously forgotten about that night-"

There came a not so polite knocking at the the sliding glass door beside them, drawing their attention sharply to an opaque version of Trowa staring at them with a seemingly knowing look. He gestured them inside then, turning away as silently as he'd shown up.

The door stuck a bit when Heero wrenched it open. Duo was there, leaning against the back of the desk chair with a blank expression on his face, eyes turning towards the sound, but not quite meeting Heero's own.

Could it be, that he had heard their conversation? Or perhaps just a portion of it- though Heero wasn't sure which would be preferable. Context was definitely required for some of the things thrown about on that balcony.

If he had listened in, Duo did not betray in any other way than slight avoidance. Instead he turned his vision towards a plastic bag thrust towards him from a frowning Wufei. It had just now occurred to Heero that the braided man was only wearing his bloodied leather pants and nothing else.

"Clean up and then we'll discuss the possible scenarios of this case," he all but commanded. Instead of a wise retort, Duo simply snatched the proffered clean clothes and shuffled towards the washroom.

Heero's eyes vaguely followed him and then found themselves staring a whole in the wall they'd fucked against not more than a half-hour previous.

Wufei was there to break his sudden transfixion. "Preventer has not been called to that club, nor have the local authorities."

It took Heero a moment to process that, but before he could speak Quatre was already chomping at the bit. "Which means that whatever is happening at that club is a much larger transgression than to worry on attempted murder."

Wufei was already turning towards the kitchen, thumb and forefinger pinching at the bridge of his nose, Quatre hot on his heels spouting off more obvious truths.

Heero caught Trowa at the elbow before he could join the other men. "I don't think calling in Quatre was necessary," he hissed through clenched teeth.

"No?" Trowa turned towards him with a look of intense apathy. "And what do you propose? You've already got Preventer's arm twisted in this, how is a government official any more problematic for you?" The dryness in his words cut through Heero with ease. "And it wasn't my idea, it was Wufei's."

The muscles in his arm ceased working for the moment it took for Trowa to pull away and head towards the small kitchen. It was not so much the truth in his words, or the correction to his assumption, but the way in which Heero suddenly felt helpless- falling aimlessly into a pit dug specifically for him by one Shinigami.

Maybe he should have heeded some of their previous warnings.

It happened then, Duo was suddenly at his side like a shadow, tugging him from his desired destination and into the unlit hallway. "I think I might know why Zechs is looking for me."

Heero stared at him sharply, resisting the urge to viciously pin him to the wall. "Why?"

For once Duo looked entirely serious, if not a little paler than usual. "He thinks that I entirely fucked up his little sister's life because I'm-  _in love with you_."


	12. Just Hidden, Not Forgotten

"Say that again?"

"He thinks I'm in love with you- actually I think his exact words were 'unhealthily obsessed.'"

"You've spoken with him?"

"Yeah, he's pretty much been threatening my well-being since the day he found out I was back dirtside."

The realization that the word 'love' had been spoken entirely in the context of Zechs Merquise's paranoia hit him full force in the sternum. It was wholly possible that the statement had been the utmost truth, but at this point- and with Duo's proverbially smirking mask cemented firmly in place- Heero wasn't sure what to believe.

His tongue began to sting for a moment before Heero realized he'd been biting it. "Perhaps we should be discussing the Kruse situation before delving into other matters-"

"No, that's just it-" Duo interrupted, eyes widening as if some sort of epiphany had occurred in his haphazard train of thoughts. "-what if there's a connection here. Shit, how would Merquise've known where to find me- unless of course it was a happy coincidence for him to find us at  _Pavot_ -"

Heero's fingers moved to tighten against Duo's wrist. "Get a grip, you're sounding trigger happy," he growled, staring at the other man in serious confusion. "Are you sure some of that blood wasn't your own?"

"I'm  _fine_ ," Duo spat back. "And since when are you one to defend Zechs?"

"I'm not defending him," Heero answered in a low and barely patient tone. "I'm just not going to start incriminating the man on the basis of unfounded hunches and whatever  _dispute_  you're having with him."

"Dispute? Don't make it sound so domestic," Duo sneered back. "And have you forgotten that you, Heero, are a fairly large component in this 'dispute' or whatever the fuck you want to call it?"

Heero was just about to argue that they didn't really have time to be arguing about this when they were interrupted in a surprisingly fortuitous way for once.

Quatre was there, his eyes locked on the way Heero was still grasping Duo's arm, white knuckles and all. He swallowed once and then met their stares with a practiced smile of innocence.

"Wufei has made tea," he informed. "I think perhaps in hopes of initiating a productive discussion on how to proceed forward with this- this  _investigation_." The word 'investigation' came out rather like something unfamiliar stuck to the man's tongue, which for some reason made Heero's throat tighten with the urge to laugh.

Duo pushed off the wall- fully ignoring Heero now that there was a new presence to focus his incessant ideas on- and ambled towards Quatre with something knowing glinting at the depths of his eyes. "No offense, Quat," he said, draping a languid arm across petite shoulders. "But why the hell is a respectable representative such as yourself involving himself in this pool of potential criminal activity?"

The braided man guided them towards the kitchen, Heero trailing behind with a dissatisfied feeling brewing in his stomach, nothing to do with his earlier sickness, and listening to Quatre's pointed laugh as he answered, "Can't let the rest of you have  _all_  the fun now."

Duo leaned in with a intrigued grin. "Don't wanna keep those white gloves clean?"

Heero was almost certain he saw the blond's eyes roll in actual contempt. "Do you forget they're already covered in blood owing to a certain couple poking around where they oughtn't not be?"

"You know," Duo chuckled, not bothering to acknowledge Trowa or Wufei's looks as they entered the small kitchen. "The one thing that really bothers me about that statement is the weird use of 'couple.'"

It was almost unconscionable to think, but Heero had to agree with him.

"Funny, I have this unmitigated feeling that there's something you're hiding from us." Trowa spoke, dry as ever, and directly towards Heero- for whatever reason.

He opened his mouth to respond in kind, but Quatre seemed to find the need to have at it first. "Nothing to do with the conversation we are about to have, I assure you."

If it'd been anyone else, Heero had the feeling that Trowa might've argued, but instead he leaned back against the sparse countertop and folded arms across his chest, oddly defeated.

"I was promised tea," Duo announced, sidling up to Wufei with that smirk wrapping his features. But there was something off about it, as if he could sense that the impending conversation was not going to bode well for them. Or at least, that's what Heero was feeling as he joined them by settling himself with one shoulder against the entryway.

"And I was promised that you wouldn't do anything stupid, but we don't always get what we want, do we?" Came the sharp response, though still a small white cup was handed off to the braided man, the rising steam rolling backwards with the motion.

Heero waved him off when Wufei gestured towards him. Duo, before taking a tentative sip, screwed up his brows a bit. "Never promised a thing- don't know what you're talking about."

It seemed, by the way Wufei's flexing fists were beginning to tremble, that an even more child-like argument was going to ensue, but then, just as suddenly as his temper had seemed to emerge, he took a steadying breath and looked Duo straight in the eyes.

"Your last investigation with Preventer was working a case of money laundering and a breach of classified information out of Representative Lindsey's office."

The words seemed out of nowhere, but based on Quatre and Trowa's non-reaction, they'd been practiced before in the company of others- how many it couldn't be certain, but for now Heero could only assume that this investigation was still limited to their little oddball group- perhaps not excluding Une herself- and the thought of that didn't entirely make Heero feel at ease.

Duo, for what it was worth, kept his composure. He exhaled slowly, a ploy for more time as Heero could practically see the wheels frantically working inside his mind. The statement hadn't been so much in the 'accusatory' realm, as it had been in the 'looking for chinks in that armor of nonchalance' realm. Duo's voice was calm when he spoke next.

"I want you to know that it will be your fault if this conversation turns a bit ugly. Here I thought we would be talking about more important details of this case-"

Wufei's jaw ground forcefully. " _This_   _case_? How is this any less involved in those murders? You stabbed a man."

And then there was Quatre, leveling open palms at his shoulder like some sort of partially motivated mediator. "It was attempted- as far as we know Kruse isn't dead." His voice was filled with little confidence in that matter.

Duo growled. "It was self-defense-"

"Unfortunately I don't think that will go over well in a courtroom. You went with the man willingly- in a  _brothel_." Trowa spoke with the levelness he was known for, though there was something near  _regretful_  there, lingering in the background. "There's no evidence past that, other than what was exchanged between you- which will be flimsy at best."

"If Prev hasn't been notified then no court is going to be involved-" Duo was cut off yet again, but this time by a strong hand a his shoulder.

Heero stared at him hard. "I don't believe that is why Chang has brought this information up."

There was a brief pause amongst them all. Duo set down his tea and Wufei managed to unfurl his tightly clenched fists. The agent spoke with a new edge of softness. "Duo. Why did we go to  _Pavot_ , really?"

Duo just stood, tense and disbelieving. A warmth radiated off his skin like a flush of- uncertainty? Embarrassment? Heero didn't know, and could not read him either. The mask seemed to be crumbling, but to reveal something foreign beneath it.

"You think I've gotten you all involved to help settle some little score from over a year ago on a colony and a case where none of you have even the slightest grounds? Kruse is a bastard, but that's not why I targeted him tonight. His name was plastered all over Emir's book."

"That doesn't exactly elevate my desire to trust you," Wufei intervened sharply.

With a sneering grin Duo shot back, "Gee thanks. What a kind pal-"

"I am  _not_  asking you this as your friend, Maxwell!" Wufei's hand jumped forward, fingers furling around Duo's wrist to catch his attention. Red was beginning to crawl up his neck. "Now look me in the eye and tell me that you had no ulterior motive here."

Duo's eyes narrowed in his direction, but he did match the fierce gaze. "No ulterior motive, Chang- it's a coincidence." With that he managed to pull his arm free, making the move to stand infinitesimally closer to Heero than he had been before.

In turn Heero frowned, but for other reasons altogether. "But wouldn't Kruse recognize you?"

"Duo wasn't exactly a major player on the case- think ' _consultant_ ,'" Wufei answered acidly before the braided man could even open his mouth.

"Thank you," Duo spat out dryly, eyes rolling. "Now why are we still so hung up on this when we could be discussing Zechs Merquise walking onto the fucking scene or the phone number I've retrieved with  _minimal_  bloodshed."

It was one of those moments where Heero thought Duo might say something joking like, 'too soon?' But he didn't. He just stood there, stiff as a board, and utterly serious.

Wufei turned his sights on Trowa with a raised brow. The other man shrugged one shoulder, just barely. "He was hostile, but not as though he were looking to kill."

"This is serious," Quatre hissed out in a low whisper. Heero had to replay the words in his mind- had that been anything but serious? The blond was shaking his head and Trowa just glanced down at him with the hint of a smirk tweaking the corner of his mouth.

Heero didn't really care to stay on the topic for too long anyways. "Wrong place at the wrong time. He's looking for Duo to settle something personal- nothing to do with Preventer or this case."

"What's it with you lot and poking holes in all of  _my_  leads?" Duo griped, folding arms across his chest as if in a pout.

"Hardly leads," Wufei said, though less condescending than the words could've come out. "We'll stop when your ideas are not so full of hot air."

" _Heero_." It came out as a whine. Duo actually  _whined_  his name, but by the time he'd turned his vision to the side the man was already stumbling over the childlike embarrassment of it. He cleared his throat, which really didn't do anything at all to help.

Heero watched Trowa's mouth quiver and Quatre's brows furrow rather horrifyingly through his peripherals. He licked his lips before speaking. "Maybe now is not the best time to be discussing these things."

"Yes, I agree," Quatre added, eyes lightening only a fraction as the attention was turned back to him. "It's been a long night. A bit of sleep would do us all good."

In translation that really meant 'you're all sounding like idiots, now go to bed.' Heero knew it for certain. And suddenly, shoulders slumping a fraction, he was beginning to agree with the sentiment.

* * *

A half hour later he found himself back at Duo's apartment, because naturally where else would he go? Duo had already shipped Hilde off to spend some 'much needed vacation time' with some sort of second-cousin, once removed, or other- and even though Quatre had offered him a suite in his Brussels home, Heero somehow felt that to be even more uncomfortable than shacking up with the person he'd been...well,  _shacking up with_.

And what with the things Quatre had explained to him- he was suddenly beginning to think that maybe Duo- in all his mysterious, murderous, Shingiami fashion- wasn't as bewildering as he'd once thought.

In fact, he wanted to go home with Duo, to his bed, to sleep there with him. And really the only problem with that was that _he wanted to go home with Duo, to his bed, to sleep there with him._

All manner of these things were still floating annoyingly around his head when Duo turned to him after they'd crossed the threshold, took one head-to-toe look at him and said very plainly, "You look rough, Yuy."

Heero, for his sake, wanted nothing more in that moment than to ignore the words that had just been so blatantly thrown at him, understanding that- more than likely- Duo was simply just trying to get a rise out of him. It was unfortunate that he was fairly well succeeding in his efforts.

"You're trying to tell me that you look any better?" Heero responded pointedly, throwing a few fingers forward to address Duo's various areas of disarray.

At that Duo looked down at himself, an odd glow coming to his face as though he'd just now realized that Heero was, in fact, correct. For all intents, it seemed to be a shocking revelation for him. "Yeah, I need a shower I guess."

Duo returned his gaze back up, not waiting for any specific response, but simply staring. For a deadly second Heero mulled over his options of response if the braided man were to ask him if he'd like to join.

But instead, "You should change at least. Is that the same shirt you wore yesterday?" were the words that escaped those lilting lips.

Heero was now the one to glance down in inspection of his outwardly appearance. Was it? He couldn't quite piece together the last time he'd even begun to pay attention to what articles of clothing he was even wearing. "Hn," he grunted out, some sort of inflection attaching itself to the end, making the gruff noise sound like it wasn't totally sure of itself.

Duo was chuckling under his breath, already making his way down the hall towards the bath. "If you've gotta do laundry, we've got machines in the basement," he called backwards. "In the meantime you can borrow something of mine if ya need."

A grimace attacked Heero's features, but the expression was lost on Duo- thankfully- as he opened and closed the bathroom door without another word. In the loud silence left behind Heero could hear the lock being thrown, crystal clear.

With a sigh he turned to check on his duffel, almost forgotten in it's place sitting next to his temporary bed in the living room. It pained him to realize that he did, actually, need to do laundry. Though he wasn't sure what bothered him most- the idea of having to endure domestic chores in the morning or having to rifle through one of Duo's drawers for suitable garments that would probably- most definitely- reek of the man. And not in a bad way, of course not, but rather in a freshly laundered, warm salt, dark leather sort of way.

He'd just have to deal with it.

Heero made his way down the hall to Duo's room. It was smaller than he'd expected, the full size bed nearly taking up the entirety of the square-shaped space. Along the right wall sat a squat chest of drawers, the only other furniture to be noted.

It was surprising to find that the bedroom was actually much neater and well kept than he'd imagined, knowing Duo at least. The bed was fairly well made and there was an actual piece of art- some sort of painted scene done in dark shades of blue and gold- hanging on the wall. The drawers were also folded and organized he came to realize as he began searching for something ordinary to wear.

After deciding on a grey shirt and black track pants, Heero was beginning to feel okay about the situation. These clothes did not cause his skin to melt away or his breathing to become erratic, which were both good signs. Their scent did remind him of the man currently naked in the shower, but for only a few dangerous seconds did it cause any unrest within his subconscious.

After gathering up his own clothing, his eyes drew around the room one last time, imagining Duo actually having spent time to go out and buy matching furniture- modern and bland as it was- and an actual painting- framed and all- when his gaze was drawn to a particular item that seemed to stand out amongst his pre-notions of a certain braided menace.

There was a box on the dresser, cherry wood with an intricate nature scene carved into the lid, gold plated hinges swirling down the backside, a little hook on the front that told him it wasn't locked. It was elegant and not something he thought to have ever found in the bedroom of one Duo Maxwell- no this item seemed like it would be more at home in Wufei's tasteful studio. And yet here it was, and here he was, curiosity dangerously peaked.

He placed tentative fingers against the latch, and with a soft click lifted the lid back to reveal a pearl inlaid interior. There was a litany of things resting within the container, papers and hand addressed envelopes, a delicate wooden rosary and a few eclectic looking trinkets. Heero spotted the worn edges of something familiar peaking from underneath a twine wrapped stack of what looked like old postcards and allowed his fingers to slip underneath, pulling the thin piece of paper into view. He recognized it almost immediately, there above large printed words of warning sat a grainy image of a young boy, bruised and hanging limp against the arms of anonymous Oz uniforms. It was Duo's old wanted poster from the war.

Heero felt himself scowl. Why would he have saved something such as this? And for all this time? He imagined the thing tacked to the wall of Deathscythe, perhaps a grave reminder or else motivation to push forward, to complete his mission, to become The God of Death he always spoke of.

He studied it a moment longer before his vision picked up something else resting at the bottom of the box, the contents having been disturbed just enough to reveal not another image of Duo, but one of himself. Poster now discarded, Heero pulled at the photograph, realizing at once that it was a clipping from one of the glossy magazines he'd found himself unwillingly apart of post-war and now post-Relena. And there were others too, beneath it, some attached to articles, some cut from newspapers, most from the tabloids that had had their way with him, no thanks to Preventer or anyone else for that matter.

Swallowing hard, Heero stared down at himself. Suit pressed neat and tidy, holding a glass of half-drunk champagne, a silk gloved hand stuck in the crook of his arm. He couldn't bring himself to look at her, not her face or her elegantly dressed body, nor the forced smile she wore on her lips.

But then his eyes caught the folded edge of another paper, something familiar and typed out in a block style that he'd seen before. He found his fingers tugging at the edge to dislodge it from the box, careful not to disturb the other contents. He'd pulled it halfway before his muscles ceased listening to the commands of his brain.

_Rose are red, violets are blue. Yuy, you're dead, and now Maxwell is too._

He found his hands start to quiver, heard the sound of the shower being shut off, and did his best to put what he'd found back the way he'd found it, closing the chest just in time for Duo to saunter in, towel wrapped firmly against sharp hipbones.

For a deafening moment he could hear were Quatre's words:  _He's got this hold over you- always has and it seems to me he always will._

"Is everything alright, Heero?"

He could barely swallow down the words that were bubbling at the back of his throat. He probably looked half-in-shock, the sensation of his eyes pulling wider than usual not lost on his subconscious. So, naturally, instead of admitting defeat he took a defensive step forward, grabbed at the towel clinging to that sharp waist and pulled.

Heero had never before seen that shade of pink covering anyone's entire body before, but most especially, he'd certainly never seen it on the ever-shameless Duo Maxwell.

But it seemed the embarrassment of the moment was not destined to last long. Reality came back to them rather like a slap in the face. It only took a few short seconds for that smirk to reappear and for Duo to pounce.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story is on _hiatus,_ but I wanted to upload the chapters I have finished thus far.
> 
> I won't say it is abandoned, but I cannot say when it will be finished or make any promises. Thank you for your support now and in the past. For now, enjoy what's here and if you'd like to talk or know more you can find me on tumblr at h-lovely.


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